Mass Effect is not an RPG

[Vault101]

It seems people are really ripping into mass effect, particular ME 2 for not being RPG enough so why don't we just say its not an RPG?. Allow me to give a little rant in its defense,

now other than the dialoge people feel that alot of the other stuff was taken out, so its just "gears of war with dialouge" (whats wrong with that anyway?) so by RPG elements they mean things like the inventory screen, buying and modding your armour and your crews armour and of corse leveling.

Now other than leveling I didn't think this RPG stuff really added all that much to the game, I mean correct me if I'm wrong but how much can you love managing your squads gear? mabye people mean the part where you drive around in the mako looking for stuff ok then sure.

I feel with ME2 they cut out the stuff that wasn't really nesicary, they made the shooting better they gave us more charachters the setting felt more fleshed out.

My point is I think it's stupid that people complain about ME2 for not being RPG enough, when the first ones RPG elements (other than dialogue) weren't even that great so no its not an RPG please stop complaing thats its not an RPG

 

[D_987]

It seems people are really ripping into mass effect, particular ME 2 for not being RPG enough so why don't we just say its not an RPG?, allow me to give a little rant in its defense,

I think a lot of people don't call it an RPG [because it really isn't, or at least it's not a good one].

now other than the dialoge people feel that alot of the other stuff was taken out so its just "gears of war with dialouge" (whts wrong with that anyway?) so by RPG elements they mean things like the inventory screen, buying and modding your armour and your crews armour and of coarse leveling

What's wrong with that? Because the first game had a lot of RPG elements players were told were still included in the sequel that just weren't there. A lot of the appeal of the Mass Effect series was that it was different to any other game out there - it was a shooter that was still RPG heavy. Bioware took a lot of that out in Mass Effect 2 - is it really that surprising they alienated a part of their audience that enjoy playing games with more depth than Fable 3?

now other than leveling I didn't think this RPG stuff really added all that much to the game, I mean correct me if I'm wrong but how much can you love managing your squads gear? mabye people mean the part where you drive around in the mako looking for stuff ok then sure

Ok, what? RPG aspects add a lot to the game - managing your squad, your items, skills and so on makes your character play, and feel unique, in a way the sequel just can't create. If you don't enjoy those types of games that's fair enough, but there're more than enough mindless shooter already on the market that it's infuriating to see a franchise with so much potential like Mass Effect to degrade itself to that level.

I feel with ME2 they cut out stuff that wasn't really nesicary, they made the shooting better they gave us more charachters the setting felt more fleshed out

They did? I thought they gave us a universe half the size, if even that, of the original. Characters that were bland and uninventive, a horrible main plot that goes side-ways and achieves nothing and took away any complexity that could be found in the moral choices.

my point is I think its stupid that people complain about ME2 for not being RPG enough, when the first ones RPG elements (other than dialogue) weren't even that great so no its not an RPG stop complaininig thats its not an RPG

The first games RPG elements weren't awful, certainly not bad enough to remove completely, but when a game markets itself as an RPG, and reviewers give it "RPG of the year", it seems the general consensus is that it's an RPG...hence the complaints.

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

For the love o- Dude, just fix your grammar and spelling.

 

[Casual Shinji]

The first game's RPG elements might not have been great, but that's no reason to completely rip them out.

And I don't mind that Mass Effect 2 isn't RPG enough, I do mind however that the gameplay is monotonous as hell, just like in Dragon Age: Origins.

Bioware seriously needs to work on this.

 

[The Wykydtron]

To me it is an RPG, fuck the "RPG must have you flicking back to your inventory every FUCKING 10 minutes" school of thought though if its got good moral choices then it's an RPG.

I'm not saying that all inventory's must be purged just that sifting through all the worthless junk in ME1 was the best way to break the immersion.

 

[IBlackKiteI]

For the love o- Dude, just fix your grammar and spelling.

This.
Every time you (the OP) posts you generally have something interesting to say, but its often indecipherable.

I'm personally pretty lost on what an RPG actually is, seeing as there are so many personal takes on it, kinda like people calling games like Trackmania, Spore and MAG MMO's while others disagree, however when you think about it Mass Effect 2 really isn't the deepest game in the world anyway.
Its actually pretty damn simplistic, linear too.

It has great dialogue and characters, but thats about it.

 

[D_987]

To me it is an RPG, fuck the "RPG must have you flicking back to your inventory every FUCKING 10 minutes" school of thought though if its got good moral choices then it's an RPG.

Mass Effect 2's moral choices are on the same level as Fable's in terms of complexity...

 

[Smooth Operator]

Yes it's a perfectly acceptable game for what it is, a 3rd person shooter with crappy minigames.
But when they sell it to me as an RPG I am rightfully pissed, because they sold me celery when I wanted a big juicy steak, I'm sure people who love celery wouldn't complain but I want what I was buying.

 

[Sacman]

I think the answer you're looking for is in this link below...
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/comics/critical-miss/8501-Critical-Miss-A-Parable

 

[IBlackKiteI]

Ok.
I am seriously weirded out by this site right now.

Theres often a hell of a lot of Mass Effect threads every day and I've noticed that it switches back and forth from fanboys going on about how much they love it to people criticising its shortcomings.

Theres nothing wrong with this though, its just bizarre, one minute love, the next hate.

 

[Exocet]

Take a long time to think about the term RPG.Role playing Game.ME2 is a game and you play a role.A role you can choose.
Nowhere in this term does it say you need an inventory,stats,and a skill tree.
Don't get me wrong,I prefered the ME1 style of RPG than ME2,and I love RPGs in the traditional sense,but labeling ME2 NOT an RPG because it doesn't take the same approach as other games is stupid,especially since it stays true to the very name of RPG.

 

[The Wykydtron]

To me it is an RPG, fuck the "RPG must have you flicking back to your inventory every FUCKING 10 minutes" school of thought though if its got good moral choices then it's an RPG.

Mass Effect 2's moral choices are on the same level as Fable's in terms of complexity...

Oh you must be trolling, nothing is as bad as Fable's moral choices.

Also this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WrjwaqZfjIY&feature=related

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

Mass Effect has more actual "role playing" than most RPGs. Most JRPGs have no role playing whatsoever, and I do love a GOOD JRPG. It seems to me most people really don't understand what a RPG is supposed to be and they think RPGs are all about leveling, getting skills and abilities, and getting lots of items.

 

[Meestor Pickle]

Do you need to put a game down because its not in the genre some say it is, a kick-ass game is still kick-ass by any other genre...and has an emotionless character (voice for male shepherd)

 

[D_987]

Oh you must be trolling, nothing is as bad as Fable's moral choices.

Ok, how exactly are they different?

In both ME2 and Fable you have a very clear "good" or "bad" choice, clearly displayed through colors [In Mass Effect "good" is blue, and "bad" is red...just so you don't have to think]. There's not a single decision in the game you make that isn't clear-cut, and even the end decision is so one-sided [as in literally every member of your team tells you the right thing to do is the paragon option, even Miranda the Cerburus Op tells you that it was the right thing to do...

In the first game you could decide who lived and who died - there was some moral complexity, in ME2 you can only really let people die if you're really bad at the game [since the game tells you out right who to choose in the final mission]. They even turned the moral choices into QTE's for crying out loud, that's how worthless the system has become...

Furthermore, because they stripped out the RPG elements your character decisions are no longer due to how well versed in a particular area you are, but based around which area you chose previously meaning that even if you have a change of heart about your behavior you can't select a specific moral choice - that and you're never punished as a Paragon, most games try to make playing the "good" guy somewhat difficult - Bioware always stated this was their intention, but in ME2, unlike the first game, Paragon works with everyone, and you'll nearly always gain the better reward - hell I was wrong - Fable 3 has better moral choices than Mass Effect 2 - at least there's some complexity in deciding to put money ahead of the well-fare of your citizens.

 

[The Wykydtron]

Oh you must be trolling, nothing is as bad as Fable's moral choices.

Ok, how exactly are they different?

In both ME2 and Fable you have a very clear "good" or "bad" choice, clearly displayed through colors [In Mass Effect "good" is blue, and "bad" is red...just so you don't have to think]. There's not a single decision in the game you make that isn't clear-cut, and even the end decision is so one-sided [as in literally every member of your team tells you the right thing to do is the paragon option, even Miranda the Cerburus Op tells you that it was the right thing to do...

In the first game you could decide who lived and who died - there was some moral complexity, in ME2 you can only really let people die if you're really bad at the game [since the game tells you out right who to choose in the final mission]. They even turned the moral choices into QTE's for crying out loud, that's how worthless the system has become...

Even if they were clear cut i won't argue with you on that. But comparing it to Fable whose only choices are "willful stupid" and "Good" is something i won't allow.

At least there was actually some sort of reason for chosing between them, unlike Fable which is basically "only choose the evil option if you feel like being a dick and getting worthless money"

And QTEs? Lul woot enlighten me, do you refer to the Normandy upgrades or something?

 

[RatRace123]

Ok.
I am seriously weirded out by this site right now.

Theres often a hell of a lot of Mass Effect threads every day and I've noticed that it switches back and forth from fanboys going on about how much they love it to people criticising its shortcomings.

Theres nothing wrong with this though, its just bizarre, one minute love, the next hate.

The second game really divided the fanbase, it made the series more mainstream, and when something's mainstream it will be talked about and debated and loved and hated.

And I rhymed, I'm very very sorry for that.

At any rate, the series is still an RPG, it's just the RPG elements were more "traditional" in the first game, I personally prefer the first game and its RPG elements, but that's just my preference.

 

[Fredzor]

Mass Effect has more actual "role playing" than most RPGs. Most JRPGs have no role playing whatsoever, and I do love a GOOD JRPG. It seems to me most people really don't understand what a RPG is supposed to be and they think RPGs are all about leveling, getting skills and abilities, and getting lots of items.

What he said.

XP and inventory alone does not a roleplaying game make. The most interesting part of Mass Effect 1 was the well presented story and the options to shape it (even if only subtly) through dialogue. The inventory management was just tedious, and the levelling mechanics... well, I won't say they needed to be cut down, but the streamlined version worked nicely.

I do have some issues with the gameplay (like the rigid layering of defenses that need to be whittled down one by one, and the ammo heatsink packs), but those are relevant to the shooter, not the rpg aspect of the game.