I loved all three and if you're planning on playing any of them, start at the beginning. That's the advice I've given every one of my friends who were interested in Mass Effect, and that's what I'll be saying till the day I die.
Poll: Question regarding the Mass Effect Trilogy
- Thread starter Jezzascmezza
- Start date
The first game is important because of the story and worth playing on it's strength alone. That said, if you do play the first, focus solely on the main story missions. Being higher level does not make the game any easier (it remains exactly as tedious from a mechanical standpoint regardless of level) and the side mission stuff is incredibly tedious and, better still, none of it actually matters in any significant way. Anything the games draw on in a non-incidental fashion will come from those main quests.
The second game, in spite of what people are likely to say, is mechanically stronger than the first by a wide margin. There are plenty of accusations that it is less of an RPG because there are functionally fewer discrete choices to make in construction of a character as you play is largely a toothless one in my view. You have fewer choices to make, certainly, but at least those choices you do make are notable. For example, there was no functional difference between a soldier's use of a sniper rifle and an Infiltrator's until the second game. That said, while the second was the most beloved of the series it is also the weakest when it comes to narrative as the main plot engages in a long holding pattern while you accomplish some task that is notable but hardly earth shattering.
The third game is, in my view, the strongest of the bunch mechanically. This is because it functionally becomes nothing but a shooter in the end, but competence in the core gameplay area is important when you spend a great deal of time in action segments between the story bits. Most would agree that the narrative is strong throughout but the general consensus is the ending is weak. I don't particularly subscribe to that notion as the ending is narratively consistent but that is a matter of personal taste.
The second game, in spite of what people are likely to say, is mechanically stronger than the first by a wide margin. There are plenty of accusations that it is less of an RPG because there are functionally fewer discrete choices to make in construction of a character as you play is largely a toothless one in my view. You have fewer choices to make, certainly, but at least those choices you do make are notable. For example, there was no functional difference between a soldier's use of a sniper rifle and an Infiltrator's until the second game. That said, while the second was the most beloved of the series it is also the weakest when it comes to narrative as the main plot engages in a long holding pattern while you accomplish some task that is notable but hardly earth shattering.
The third game is, in my view, the strongest of the bunch mechanically. This is because it functionally becomes nothing but a shooter in the end, but competence in the core gameplay area is important when you spend a great deal of time in action segments between the story bits. Most would agree that the narrative is strong throughout but the general consensus is the ending is weak. I don't particularly subscribe to that notion as the ending is narratively consistent but that is a matter of personal taste.
Thank you. You've managed to encapsulate my feelings on both the series and my answer to the OP's question.votemarvel said:
Seriously. Thank you. I was all set to launch into a tirade, but I read this post and it saved me a good ten minutes. <3
I think you've got it spot on. My boyfriend loved the first Mass Effect when it came out. But after playing ME2 he found he couldn't manage another playthrough of ME1. The combat just felt "really painful" compared to ME2, which stopped him enjoying it.idon said:
I've got the impression from what people say that ME1 is more RPG and ME2 is more 3rd person shooter. So it depends what you prefer. My boyfriend is a fan of both shooters and RPGs, and says ME2 is the perfect balance for him.
Because it will take 15 - 20 hours?BeachSided said:
Personally, I haven't played any of the Mass Effect games yet, but I am planning to give one a try at some point (probably once I stop being distracted by Borderlands 2 and Torchlight 2). But I do only want to commit to playing one, because there are a lot of other games I want to play as well and my free time is limited!
My boyfriend recommends I try ME2, as a) it's his favourite and b) he thinks it has the best shooting. (He knows I'm more of a gameplay person than a story person.)
-slap- play -slap- the -slap- first -slap- Mass Effect.Jezzascmezza said:
It is awesome, the graphics are decent, and for fuck sakes its what started it all. Think, theres a reason for it. I actually think the first one is the best one simple because the universe felt more real. (yes I'm talking about the Mako runs) Its a damn good game. Play it or I'll slap you some more.
And I'm sick of the sycophantic fanboys like you who use strawman arguments to try and whitewash the problems with the game. Funny how perspective works, huh?BlakBladz said:
That's...not the point. If you make a game, you have a responsibility to make some sort of resolution. A publisher wants to make money, but they do so through offering compelling content that keeps players coming back. Sure, you could say the same thing about any medium, but all works of fiction usually have a resolution to them.
Honestly, it's like asking why reading the complete works of Sherlock Holmes is pointless because you invest dozens of hours into reading them. Whether you want to relax and enjoy something, gain new perspective on something or want to watch a compelling narrative that subverts the genre, there's plenty of relevance to fictional works. You've come at this from the worst possible perspective.
Sorry, I have no idea what you're talking about. Are you trying to compare real life to a video game, or are you just being a pessimist? If you really think that way, and you think "shit is pointless", perhaps you could jump off a bridge and spare me your pointless rambling.
By your logic, being here on a message board talking about games is pointless and irrelevant. If that's the case, why have you spent time (enough to post 742 times) if none of it matters?
Honestly, it's like you WANT to be laughed at. You didn't even answer my argument.
What you said just kind of proves my point. The first in the series you played if your favorite? Right? Well what I said was it was your first so it's likely to be your favorite. Not necessarily nostalgia, but the game that you played first. When I said Nostalgic I meant it in a lose way. Meaning it's not "nostalgia" per-say but nostalgia was the closest thing to what I was talking about. So yeah not nostalgia, but an attachment to your first.Joccaren said:
Not just Mass Effect suffers form this. The Legend of Zelda, ask most people what there favorite is and I bet it will be the first one they played. Mario same thing. The Elder Scrolls, you see it all the time with that one.
Most Wanted is my favourite game in the Need For Speed series, and it's definitely not the first one of those I played (or the last either). Assassins Creed II, Guitar Hero III, Ultima VII, Monkey Island II, Warcraft II, I'm showing my age now... none of them were the first games I played in their respective series, but they're my favourites (and when it comes to games like Ultima and Monkey Island, I LOVED the previous installments).Eddie the head said:
Yet ME1 happens to be my favourite game in the Mass Effect series and yes, it was the one I played first. If I think back over all the game franchises that I actually like, Mass Effect is almost the odd one out in that sense. But my opinion on it shouldn't count because I played it first?
Sorry, can't take you seriously on that. Next you'll be telling me I'm wrong about Powerslave being the best Iron Maiden album just because I bought it before Piece of Mind...
Eh, I played 1 and two within the same week, so my attachment to one shouldn't be that much stronger because I played it a few days before 2.Eddie the head said:
Either way, the main reason I don't like two is thanks to how simple and generic most of it is. You could chalk it up to just being attached to the first one, but no matter what game it is - if it plays like 2 or three I get bored of it quickly. If its down to anything its down to the first games I ever played being the Civilization series, and the first FPS I ever played being Quake, and me preferring that gameplay by far to the new modern stuff. Mass Effect 1 wins out thanks to its slower paced and different gameplay, and would whether I'd played 2 then 1, or 1 then 2. Its what I've come to like in the way of gameplay from the past games that I've played, rather than just liking the first game I play in a series.
Eddie the head said:
Aaaargh, this is so cool. I wish somebody would run an experiment about this! I'm one of the few people who liked KoTOR 2 better than the first, based on the feel of the inventory and leveling up screens, and Kreia's final message to you. Other than that the games felt the same to me. And I have to agree with Joccaren about ME1. The suit/weapon upgrade items made tinkering in the game fun, not to mention infinite ammo. The use of heat sink cartridges in ME2 turned the guns into regular, magazine-fed weapons. And the Mako? I'll take the Mako over planet scanning any day of the week.Joccaren said:
I think Eddie the head has popular culture on his side, but I also think Mass Effect is different because it's relatively new; they all came out on the same console, as opposed to other games that bridged the generational gap, like Halo. Damn, if the world can come up with the Tropes concept, why can't we find a term for this...this bias for the first thing we experience? "Initial Experiential Bias"? So yeah, I think there tends to be a bias for the first in a series we encounter. For me: Simpsons Hit and Run > The Simpsons Game, Burnout 3 > Everything that followed. But is it possible that people can like a sequel more than the first in a series?
Yes.
I played the first one PC a few years ago. I own a PS3 and ME2 was coming, so I wanted to play ME1 to get the backstory. I loved the story but the clunky controls (and my shitty laptop giving it major lagging issues) made it hard to play through.
Having said that though, it is worth playing through and glad you're enjoying it (totally sympathize with that Mako though). I myself will buy ME1 on the PSN when it gets here. I am hoping the switch will help it be more playable for me, because I do love the story and characters and really want to tie the whole trilogy together (not just start at 2).
Having said that though, it is worth playing through and glad you're enjoying it (totally sympathize with that Mako though). I myself will buy ME1 on the PSN when it gets here. I am hoping the switch will help it be more playable for me, because I do love the story and characters and really want to tie the whole trilogy together (not just start at 2).
I'm wanting to download the first when I can, I heard that it would be using the engine that was used for 3, although that was probably just wishful thinking I bet.
