Bioware are getting really lazy as of late. (Possible Mass Effect 2 spoilers)

[Avatar Roku]

I think hy are branching off.They have the new DA IP fo hardcore RPG's, as well as the old favorite BG 2 and Neverwinter Nights. Then they are using Mass Effect to appeal to a wider audience. I think they are just trying diffrent things.

I'm all for trying new things, but when you replace something people didn't like (the vehicle driving bits)with something else that is even more boring and tedious like mining on planets and not being able to access other planets once you've finished whatever mission Cerberus gives well, I just think that's being lazy.

Arguable, like your entire post/opinion. I don't like scanning very much, but I still enjoy it more than driving around a (mostly) barren planet to get to a mineral/objective.

And the biggest issue I have with your complaints is the side-missions thing. Side missions from ME1 were all very basic and interchangeable...go here, kill this. In ME2 practically all of the side-missions had unique stories or objectives, and I found them to be a hell of a lot more compelling than those in ME1.

None of this has anything to do with Bioware being lazy. If you complete even half of the game, you're still looking at 20+ hours worth of quality storytelling/gameplay. Getting 100% completion in Fallout 3 took me a total of 17 hours. Obviously Bioware is still one of the few developers left that can really qualify as excellent.

Yeah... I call bullshit on your post. There is no way you killed all the behemoths, explored all 120+ dungeons, completed every single quest (including Agatha's Song and Fort Constantine's, collected all bobbleheads and got to level 20 in 17 hours. You're a troll and no-one cares about your opinion.
As for mass effect 2, I could have finished the entire storyline in about 12 hours. I only got to 60 hours because I forced myself to mine everything (which I found was completely pointless) and did every crappy little sidequest there was (so you're saying the sidequest in which you had to give a fake ID to two random Asari women detained in the Citadel was "compelling" and "interesting?"). Or perhaps the side quest where you have to collect the front axel of a car for a Krogan Warlord Mechanic? (I'm not making this shit up).

I didn't say Fallout 3 GOTY, just the original Fallout 3. 17 hours. I'm not trolling. This whole thread, however, does have the stench of troll all over it. I suppose accusing your opponent of what you yourself are doing is a valid tactic, though.

Yeah.. I'm talking about Fallout 3 too (by itself). I wouldn't touch the DLC's with a 20 foot pole. There is no way you finished Fallout 3 completely in 17 hours. You're clearly a troll, please leave my thread? If you'll retract your earlier statement and admit you only finished the story quests in 17 hours, I'll stop harassing you, but there is no way you could possibly have finished the entire game (without the dlc) in seventeen hours!
I've been looking forward to Mass effect 2 sine the end of the first game. I even bought the collector's edition in anticipation. I had some inconsiderate Escapist (wildpeaks I'm talking to you) ruin a major plot point for me and I still completed the game 100%. I love mass effect and was really disappointed in the sequel. As I stated earlier... please.. just, leave my thread...

Disagreeing with you doesn't make him a troll. In fact, I'm getting more of that vibe from you.

You can't tell me he managed to finish Fallout 3 100%? in 17 hours.
And I'm not a troll. I'm a big Mass Effect fan who sincerely anticipated Mass effect 2 only to be severely disappointed when I finally got it.
I avoided reviews and threads on absolutely anything to do with the game so It wouldn't be spiled, only to find Bioware spoiled it for me within the first half an hour.
Even my achievements from the first game didn't carry over (would it have been too much to ask for those little bonuses I acquired in the first to carry over the 2nd game considering they bumped my level back so much?)

I didn't mean you were a troll because of your opinion of Mass Effect 2. It's your opinion, you're entitled to it. I do, however, think that calling someone out for what was at worst a white lie and at best an accidental embellishment as a troll is infantile, and not just because the word "troll" is severely overused as it is.

He started going on about Fallout 3 and BSing about finishing the entire game in 17 hours. If that's not derailing my thread, then I don't know what is.

How do you know he was BSing? Were you looking over his shoulder as he played? Maybe you two just define finishing the game as two different things (for example, you brought up going through every dungeon earlier, but maybe he just thinks he had to beat the major side quests and the main quest)? Besides, he wasn't derailing your thread, he mentioned it once in relation to ME, you're the one who made such a huge deal of it.

He said he'd finished it 100%. Completing all 23 Quests in the game in 17 hours? I don't think so. If he can prove it by showing me a screenshot with his hours spent I will concede and shut up.

I'd like to point out that Fallout 3 is not the sort of game which keeps a Percent Complete counter like, say, Metroid games have been known to. His "100% Complete" may be your "Barely skimming the surface" because he didn't realize there was more to do. Maybe he doesn't see exploring every point as necessary for completion, only completing every quest. Maybe he just meant it as in there was nothing else he felt he had to experience.

I just want to point out, by the way, that this whole argument is very, very irrelevant to the topic at hand. I've already addressed your OP above (post 44) if you care to comment on that.

 

[Daedalus1942]

Epic SNIP

I agree with alot of what you said and in response to me leveling to level 60. I didn't really specify. Ok obviously I didn't expect them to let me be level 60 (unless they completely changed the level cap) but it would have been nice to retain some of my previous strength (like start at level 10 or 5 and maybe have my stats (that i gained from achievements in the first game) carry over to give me a little bit of an edge rather than just completely change everything about my character apart from what he/she looked like.
As for raving about ME2, this is the first post in which I have, and I will not start another one. You have my word. I've said my piece.

 

[DeadlyYellow]

A lot of the things this guy says are completely false. For example:
-Shepherd was never Cerberus' 'nemesis'

Sole Survivor?

Don't play the games, just play the grapevine. The sense of indignation you give off nonetheless makes me chuckle. I thank you for that.

 

[Avatar Roku]

Epic SNIP

I agree with alot of what you said and in response to me leveling to level 60. I didn't really specify. Ok obviously I didn't expect them to let me be level 60 (unless they completely changed the level cap) but it would have been nice to retain some of my previous strength (like start at level 10 or 5 and maybe have my stats (that i gained from achievements in the first game) carry over to give me a little bit of an edge rather than just completely change everything about my character apart from what he/she looked like.

Actually, an imported level 60 does let you start as level 5. It also gives you 10,000 of every element and some amount of money I forgot (because you get a much bigger monetary bonus for importing a rich character).

 

[Daedalus1942]

Epic SNIP

I agree with alot of what you said and in response to me leveling to level 60. I didn't really specify. Ok obviously I didn't expect them to let me be level 60 (unless they completely changed the level cap) but it would have been nice to retain some of my previous strength (like start at level 10 or 5 and maybe have my stats (that i gained from achievements in the first game) carry over to give me a little bit of an edge rather than just completely change everything about my character apart from what he/she looked like.

Actually, an imported level 60 does let you start as level 5. It also gives you 10,000 of every element and some amount of money I forgot (because you get a much bigger monetary bonus for importing a rich character).

It didn't let me start at level 5, I started at level 3 (and missed out on stat points from the first two levels).
Also, I had like 3 million currency in the first and in the second I started of with 5000 I think it was. I was quite pissed.

 

[Avatar Roku]

Epic SNIP

I agree with alot of what you said and in response to me leveling to level 60. I didn't really specify. Ok obviously I didn't expect them to let me be level 60 (unless they completely changed the level cap) but it would have been nice to retain some of my previous strength (like start at level 10 or 5 and maybe have my stats (that i gained from achievements in the first game) carry over to give me a little bit of an edge rather than just completely change everything about my character apart from what he/she looked like.

Actually, an imported level 60 does let you start as level 5. It also gives you 10,000 of every element and some amount of money I forgot (because you get a much bigger monetary bonus for importing a rich character).

It didn't let me start at level 5, I started at level 3 (and missed out on stat points from the first two levels).
Also, I had like 3 million currency in the first and in the second I started of with 5000 I think it was. I was quite pissed.

That's odd. Importing a level 50-59 gives you level 3, I distinctly remember starting at level 5 my first playthrough. In fact, here, [http://masseffect.wikia.com/wiki/Save_File_Transfer#Character_Transfer] proof (bottom of "Character Stats and Levels paragraph). I wonder what happened to your game.

 

[ShotgunShaman]

or am I just nitpicking on little things?

This. I'll give you the low amount of gun choices though. I was really dissapointed in that decision. Other than that it wasn't bad. And the way you play the game determines how much of your crew comes back

So it does change? Because nobody died in my playthrough. Even shepherd came back. I thought the whole point was it's a suicide mission and they'll probably introduce a new main character in ME3. That's the feeling I got when I finished it. Shepherd was supposed to die, and stay dead.

I haent finished mine yet, but my brother lost two people. I think whoevers personal mission you do determines if that person comes back or not.

Lol I totally failed because I half assed the entire point of gathering your team. Everyone died!

And one thing I wanted to say in this thread is how perfectly this game compliments borderlands. I want story and mildly tactical combat, with realism and such, I play ME2. I want lots of loot and tons of silly action, I play Borderlands. I'm pretty much set for awhile.

 

[Lonan]

You are indeed nitpicking, and to great extremes. It's different, get over it. It's not a typical RPG, get over it.

As for planet scanning, it was really convinient that everything of value on the planet was within about 4 square kilometres, wasn't it? It wasn't also convinient that you didn't have to go through the effort of finding anything of value on the planet from space. Now you actually have to go around it from orbit, as would actually be done, and find things from space. You're scanning an ENTIRE PLANET. Call it tedious, I call it an ENTIRE PLANET. The fact that you can scan the whole thing in a couple minutes is quite remarkable. I LOVED the Mako, but it's gone now, get over it.

Liara is not a *****, she's incredibly polite and deeply apoligetic that she isn't able to just get up from the head position she has as one of the most important people in the entire galaxy to go on a suicide mission, and you interpret that as being a cold-hearted *****? And she is not in anyway crazy, she has a desk job, that is in no way insane. If you're talking about her killing people, you seem to have forgotten that the Shadow Broker or someone killed one of her friends. For someone who is so against critical of the games plot, you aren't very aware of it. You probably just started frothing in the mouth once you were told to pick up a thermal clip and hated the rest of the game from their. Oh, and Liara actually recovered you're body and gave it to Cerberus to revive you. She was confronted by the Illusive Man and told that the Collectors had hired the Shadow Broker to give Shepard;'s body to them. Liara took it upon herself to find you're body before the Shadow Broker, arguably the most powerful influence in the galaxy, before the Collectors got it. She then apoligises for giving you to Cerberus, and reveals that she did it for selfish reasons, namely, she couldn't let go of you. Out of contempt for the Shadow Broker for being willing to give you to the collectors, she makes an entire organisation with the intention of bringing down the Shadow Broker once and for all. Everything she's done for the past 2 years have been for you, and you think she's a cold hearted ***** for it. YOU are a cold-hearted *****.

As for the Human Reaper, you obviously have no interest in the plot you complain about so much here either. It's not for asthetics, the Reapers are a mix of organic and inorganic (synthetic) matter. The fact that a movie called Terminator exists is you're entire reason for hating the Human Reaper. And you can call it Bioware's decision, but the reality is that the plot most heavily contributed to by a renowned science fiction author from St. Albert, Alberta. Were you pissed at J.K. Rowling for having a happy ending to Harry Potter? Was it too generic for you?

You're complaints have the depth of a drop of water in Saudi Arabia.

 

[Daedalus1942]

Epic SNIP

I agree with alot of what you said and in response to me leveling to level 60. I didn't really specify. Ok obviously I didn't expect them to let me be level 60 (unless they completely changed the level cap) but it would have been nice to retain some of my previous strength (like start at level 10 or 5 and maybe have my stats (that i gained from achievements in the first game) carry over to give me a little bit of an edge rather than just completely change everything about my character apart from what he/she looked like.

Actually, an imported level 60 does let you start as level 5. It also gives you 10,000 of every element and some amount of money I forgot (because you get a much bigger monetary bonus for importing a rich character).

It didn't let me start at level 5, I started at level 3 (and missed out on stat points from the first two levels).
Also, I had like 3 million currency in the first and in the second I started of with 5000 I think it was. I was quite pissed.

That's odd. Importing a level 50-59 gives you level 3, I distinctly remember starting at level 5 my first playthrough. In fact, here, [http://masseffect.wikia.com/wiki/Save_File_Transfer#Character_Transfer] proof (bottom of "Character Stats and Levels paragraph). I wonder what happened to your game.

Well I played on the PC version and came along alot of glitches. Either that, or I was level 59 and only thought I got to level 60.

 

[Daedalus1942]

You are indeed nitpicking, and to great extremes. It's different, get over it. It's not a typical RPG, get over it.

As for planet scanning, it was really convinient that everything of value on the planet was within about 4 square kilometres, wasn't it? It wasn't also convinient that you didn't have to go through the effort of finding anything of value on the planet from space. Now you actually have to go around it from orbit, as would actually be done, and find things from space. You're scanning an ENTIRE PLANET. Call it tedious, I call it an ENTIRE PLANET. The fact that you can scan the whole thing in a couple minutes is quite remarkable. I LOVED the Mako, but it's gone now, get over it.

Liara is not a *****, she's incredibly polite and deeply apoligetic that she isn't able to just get up from the head position she has as one of the most important people in the entire galaxy to go on a suicide mission, and you interpret that as being a cold-hearted *****? And she is not in anyway crazy, she has a desk job, that is in no way insane. If you're talking about her killing people, you seem to have forgotten that the Shadow Broker or someone killed one of her friends. For someone who is so against critical of the games plot, you aren't very aware of it. You probably just started frothing in the mouth once you were told to pick up a thermal clip and hated the rest of the game from there. Oh, and Liara actually recovered you're body and gave it to Cerberus to revive you. She was confronted by the Illusive Man and told that the Collectors had hired the Shadow Broker to give Shepard;'s body to them. Liara took it upon herself to find you're body before the Shadow Broker, arguably the most powerful influence in the galaxy, before the Collectors got it. She then apoligises for giving you to Cerberus, and reveals that she did it for selfish reasons, namely, she couldn't let go of you. Out of contempt for the Shadow Broker for being willing to give you to the collectors, she makes an entire organisation with the intention of bringing down the Shadow Broker once and for all. Everything she's done for the past 2 years have been for you, and you think she's a cold hearted ***** for it. YOU are a cold-hearted *****.

As for the Human Reaper, you obviously have no interest in the plot you complain about so much here either. It's not for asthetics, the Reapers are a mix of organic and inorganic (synthetic) matter. The fact that a movie called Terminator exists is you're entire reason for hating the Human Reaper. And you can call it Bioware's decision, but the reality is that the plot most heavily contributed to by a renowned science fiction author from St. Albert, Alberta. Were you pissed at J.K. Rowling for having a happy ending to Harry Potter? Was it to generic for you?

You're complaints have the depth of a drop of water in Saudi Arabia.

First of all, I haven't read the Retribution comic yet(but thank you for spoiling the plot), second of all I didn't think the Reaper made any sense. It's not explained why it was in a human form. Why did they build a giant "Human" reaper? would it affect humans more rapidly? Would they look upon this Giant and welcome it more readily because of a human face? It would have made more sense to me to have the Reaper look identical to Commander Shepherd (now THAT would have been the ultimate reaper). People would trust it more readily and it could easily indoctrinate everyone.
Also, thanks for calling me a cold hearted *****. I'm male, but regardless, you'll most likely get a warning for that (as I have gotten so many in the past).
P.S I can't stand Harry Potter, and the scanning took forever in Mass Effect 2. If i'd only had to spend a minute scanning it wouldn't have bothered me, but depleting every single planet took forever and i thought it would useful. I could have scanned like a tenth of what I did and had enough afford every single research item.

 

[Lonan]

Might I just be lazy and point you in the direction of Shamus's blog?

Is this guy a famous reviewer or something?

 

[henrius]

I thought Mass Effect was quite enjoyable.

The problem with the Mako is the shields took FOREVER to recharge, so you'd go into battle, kill a thing or two, and then wait a couple minutes for the Mako's shields to recharge again. I think they should reintroduce the Mako in the third, but with a lot better planet design than just mountainous areas of slightly different color and of course better shields. Also, scanning can go, or at least make it a lot more quick (I thought the upgrade for it made the scanner bigger).

The story was great, but if you did everything right (gained everyones loyalty, upgrades etc) the story lost most of its suspense, and the suicide mission idea died off with it. Since the story was split up by character gathering, it lost some of its fluidity and got a little slow, though most character recruitment levels and loyalty levels were pretty fun.

The combat is a lot better, but the cover system needs work. I always like how smooth the Gears of War cover system was, and Commander Shepard just didn't control as well as he should have, and would sometimes pop out of cover or take his time to move out of it or back into it.

The AI, though better, could still use an upgrade, especially your allies. Once I had put both squad mates in the path of a krogan to block him, he strolled on by both of them, didn't attack and went straight for me (while I was trying to take care of these pesky enemies, thus distracted but had faith they'd block the onslaught) and killed me! My allies and the krogan weren't interested in fighting one another, and both ignored each other!

They could've used more weapons, though I liked the ammo-type system where ammo was a power you'd activate.

Lastly, the levels, especially the non-combat ones (Citadel especially) felt so choppy! There was no exploring or walking around, just a loading screen and you're at the next bland level. There was barely any presidium to walk around in!

The game was still great though, especially the ending, but it can still use some improvements.

 

[DeadlyYellow]

Is this guy a famous reviewer or something?

No, but I like him. Perhaps a bit too much.

He does a few series for the Escapist as well.

 

[DustyDrB]

Spoiler

About the Human-Reaper: Many have hypothesized that what we encountered at the end of the game is what comprises the core of the reaper. If you notice the Reaper fleet, they all have the cuttlefish design. We really can't know this for sure, but it makes sense considering that even when it would have been fully built, the Reaper's we have seen would still dwarf it substantially.

Also, keep in mind there's still a third part to this story. What may seem like plot holes, inconsistencies, or dumb ideas may be explained in Mass Effect 3. Don't judge those shady elements of it before it has had a chance to tell the complete story.

 

[Weaver]

Mass effect is no longer an RPG, it's just an action game with a good story.
While I'm all for BioWare trying new stuff, i wish they would just have made a NEW IP as an action game instead of altering a perfectly respectable RPG.

Remember how everyone was so excited when a Pokemon game would FINALLY be released on the N64? God we were sweating with anticipation, constantly checking for news! Then we find out it's Pokemon Snap... and I never trusted a gaming company again. Snap was actually a pretty damn fun game in it's own right, but it's just not what we were expecting or wanted. To me, ME2 is pokemon snap.

 

[Slaanax]

On a side note about the weapons, you had like 200 weapons in the old game that all did the exact same thing. The assault rifles fired on full auto, the pistol and shotgun single shot. Sniper Rifle just had 1 or 2 shots you could take. In ME2 3 assault rifles one that is full auto, one that is 3 round burst and the Pulse rifle is effective against shields and barriers.
The 2 submachine guns are different. One Sniper rifle hits softer but has more ammo.
The powers could have been used differently, but in ME2 you actually had to make sure you used the right power against the right target and the resistances added a layer that the first one was lacking. I don't even like 3rd person shooters that much, but ME2 did an okay job mixing RPG and Shooting elements. The leveling system was almost the same and the way it worked you could have a few maxed powers or a be a more well rounded class. I played through on hardcore once though. I did prefer the Mako over the Scanning only because it gave you sense of doing something.

 

[shadow skill]

Snip

I largely agree with you. I would say that the entire interface was designed by a complete moron just on colour choice alone. How the fuck do you make a game that is as text heavy as this and make so much of it so god awful to read because of poor contrast? (I'm not even going to discuss the SDTV bullshit.) I say this as someone who occasionally has to write interfaces for software, not just a consumer. Shamus is so right about everything he wrote on his blog that it isn't even funny. I have said it before and I will say it again Mass Effect 2 should have been about Liara trying to secure Shepard's body. The fact that Liara's personality changed so drastically with no in game explanation isn't excused because there is an out of game explanation of the events prior to Shepard's resurrection. It only means that the writer's didn't explain things properly in game. The final choice also struck me as total bullshit, they really expect me to blow up all that Reaper tech when it could hold the key to resisting indoctrination, since it probably contains data on how Reapers work in the first place?! Are they kidding? Every important industrialized nation on Earth was trying to build a nuclear weapon during WWII, I wonder if ME 2's writer(s) have any clue why? (Hint it's not because they were evil.) There didn't seem to be this moral dilemma for the Turians when they carted off Sovereign's main gun and figured out how to make a miniature version of it, which you promptly bolt onto Normandy presumably because it kills things better.

To put things in perspective MGS2 has fewer consistency problems than this game and there is a game that wanted you to believe that the arm of the villain from the last game was possessing a seventy plus year old man and changing his voice to that of someone about forty years his junior. Keep in mind that the Patriots were a giant retcon as well.

 

[RN7]

@Daedalus1942

I kind of agree with you at some points (I never played the first Mass Effect so my view is kind of biased, in my opinion). From what I've seen of Mass Effect, the sequel seems more like an expansion pack than a stand-alone game, but never playing the original and not knowing/understanding certain plot points, I found the game somewhere between good and very good.

On a side note, having the final boss look like that was significant story-wise. We learn of a new, disturbing aspect of the Reapers. And considering it was a "baby" and made from humans, it could have different abilities than the cephaploid reapers.

 

[The Heik]

Epic SNIP

I agree with alot of what you said and in response to me leveling to level 60. I didn't really specify. Ok obviously I didn't expect them to let me be level 60 (unless they completely changed the level cap) but it would have been nice to retain some of my previous strength (like start at level 10 or 5 and maybe have my stats (that i gained from achievements in the first game) carry over to give me a little bit of an edge rather than just completely change everything about my character apart from what he/she looked like.
As for raving about ME2, this is the first post in which I have, and I will not start another one. You have my word. I've said my piece.

I can agree with you on the level thing. They should at least give you some advantages to playing though ME1. Maybe even some unique gear for actually saving the Citadel.

And pardon the stuff about so many ME2 threads but today alone had something like 15 separate threads about the game and the whole time since ME2 came out has been a landslide of the bleeding things so I kinda snapped.

Lets just hope Bioware listens to these posts and makes ME3 a gem. Knock on wood

Actually, an imported level 60 does let you start as level 5. It also gives you 10,000 of every element and some amount of money I forgot (because you get a much bigger monetary bonus for importing a rich character).

And BTW the mineral thing also happens after you've beaten ME2 once. And it's 50,000 of each resource and 200,000 credits