Time to finish Mass Effect 1 quickly-ish?

[ARMYMAN]

So, with the release of Mass Effect 3 fast approaching, I'd like to "prepare" for the Reapers' eventual landing by learning my history
I played ME2 and I thought that the gameplay was really good- both the combat and the whole aspect of 'choice' appealed to me. Also, the final mission. Wow!
It was the first Bioware game I'd played and I really liked it, so I went off to get ME1 with similar expectations. Ahh! Playing the most updated version on steam, I felt.. detached from gameplay. The immersion was ruined quickly when Kaiden ran around the battlefield screaming "ENEMIES ARE EVERYWHERE!!!" over and over again. I think it simply lacked all the overall polish of ME2. Also, I know there's people who would call me an RPG baby or whatever, but all the hardcore RPG stuff concerning weapons and upgrades just felt a bit clunky and perhaps a tad overdone. I can see how they watered it down in ME2 and why that might upset some, but frankly, who wants to read over stats on a pause menu?! Well, my question.. I just want to know how long it would take me to get through all of the main story bits of ME1, so as to get a savefile ready and be filled in on all the pre ME2 happenings.

 

[80Maxwell08]

Um you could just get a save file from somewhere. Hold on...
http://www.masseffectsaves.com/
There you go. Saves for both ME1&2. Honestly you might miss a bit of characterization so here you go. Kaiden is wood that talks and Ashley is a racist. Since the rest of the cast is in ME2 I don't need to explain them much though I should mention Liara had a total 180 in her personality from ME1 to ME2. That was actually was the reason I stopped trying to romance her.

 

[Mekado]

a "speed run" could also mess up some minor plot elements that exports to ME2(and probably ME3), Conrad verner comes to mind, or the geth data for tali, or Helena Blake etc...

If you're not interested in playing it, getting a pre-made save like Maxwell suggested might be your best bet for a "complete" save.

Edit: and yes, your squad is dumb as rocks in ME1

 

[ARMYMAN]

Ah cool, thanks.
I find it hard to believe how Mass Effect 1 is as acclaimed as it is. I know I'm late to the hate party, but arghh.. and the Mako.. feels like I'm driving a helium balloon with a Turkish cannon strapped to it. When I got stuck in the geometry, I would often use the huge reverse momentum from the gun to free myself
Can't wait for ME3 though. Concerned about the 'tighter' focus they're trying to implement, as I liked the wider array of personalities ME2 offered.

 

[Mekado]

Ah cool, thanks.
I find it hard to believe how Mass Effect 1 is as acclaimed as it is. I know I'm late to the hate party, but arghh.. and the Mako.. feels like I'm driving a helium balloon with a Turkish cannon strapped to it. When I got stuck in the geometry, I would often use the huge reverse momentum from the gun to free myself
Can't wait for ME3 though. Concerned about the 'tighter' focus they're trying to implement, as I liked the wider array of personalities ME2 offered.

The Mako is either love or hate for most people hehe, i loved it but it's true it feels like it's made of superballs.As for the guns/armor, i preferred it in ME1 where you had a lot of stuff, ME2 streamlined equipment a lot, focusing on action.

If you want a "complete" femshep save for ME1 (all sub-missions done, all planets visited,Kaidan dead) i could send one of mine, though you can probably get some nice games through masseffectsaves.com

 

[80Maxwell08]

Ah cool, thanks.
I find it hard to believe how Mass Effect 1 is as acclaimed as it is. I know I'm late to the hate party, but arghh.. and the Mako.. feels like I'm driving a helium balloon with a Turkish cannon strapped to it. When I got stuck in the geometry, I would often use the huge reverse momentum from the gun to free myself
Can't wait for ME3 though. Concerned about the 'tighter' focus they're trying to implement, as I liked the wider array of personalities ME2 offered.

Honestly I wish people realized that neither game is that good when you start analyzing things. The writing has its moments but a very large portion of the time its horrible (like the beginning of ME with the council where your dialog options are Paragon :yell at the council, neutral : yell at the council and Renegade : yell at the council). The first game has no sense of balance and the second one feels like the RPG part is tacked on. The first time I played both ME1&2 I played as Soldier and didn't use a single skill the entire game because in ME liara would have immobilized everything in the air and halfway through the game my rifle had near infinite ammo (also a few hours later it DID have infinite ammo) and ME2 seems like it was designed entirely around being a 3rd person shooter so the skills do speed some things up but didn't even hinder me when I didn't use any of them. I get the feeling people like it so much because 1: it's a new Sci-Fi setting (Though I did hear people say it was basically ripping off babylon 5 but I can't say anything about that) and 2: It's made by Bioware. Honestly between the Mass Effect series, DA2, and SWTOR my faith in Bioware is dead so I'm done buying their games. Also quick note I actually liked the Mako. I thought it was fun defying the physics engine and driving on the side of a mountain at a 90% angle.

 

[AD-Stu]

If you're willing to skip dialog, you can apparently get through the main plot in under two hours. If you actually want to listen to the dialog and take a little more time to kill some bad guys (and I'm assuming no DLC) it'd probably take more like 8-10 hours.

You'll miss minor stuff as mentione above, yes Conrad Verner is good for a laugh but he's hardly important and would you really care if you didn't see Helena Blake again in ME2? I wouldn't have. That said, we don't actually have any idea how that kind of stuff is going to affect ME3...

Um you could just get a save file from somewhere. Hold on...
http://www.masseffectsaves.com/
There you go. Saves for both ME1&2. Honestly you might miss a bit of characterization so here you go. Kaiden is wood that talks and Ashley is a racist. Since the rest of the cast is in ME2 I don't need to explain them much though I should mention Liara had a total 180 in her personality from ME1 to ME2. That was actually was the reason I stopped trying to romance her.

^ or this.

FWIW I think the change in Liara's character is explained for the most part by the trauma of losing Shepard and what she went through afterwards, which is explained a little more fully in Lair of the Shadow Broker. Plus remember she's not much more than a teenager by asari standards.

 

[DustyDrB]

Just the main story bits? Around 15 hours or so, maybe less if you turn down the difficulty. You have to really like the game to enjoy the side quests (I do like the game as a whole. Hell, it's my #3 game all-time. But even I have to admit this). They are full of re-used interiors/caves and padded gameplay (Mako traveling and collectables that do nothing but give you a little XP). Sometimes you'll stumble across something different, but they are rare. I do enjoy them for the story bits and because I actually enjoy BioWare's style of gameplay, but most people can go without them.

If you do want to do a few side quests, these are the ones they should be:
-Geth Incursions (Tali)
-Family Armor (Wrex)
-Find Dr. Saleon (Garrus)
-Rogue VI (once you finish this one, you're allowed to pick a class specialization that you can upgrade further)
-Missing Marines (and the chain of quests that follows)
-Colony of the Dead
-Dead Scientists
-Asari Diplomacy
-Hostage
-Major Kyle

And some of those at the end you can ignore if you wish as well (I'd say the last five you can do without). Most of those are companion side quests or relate to Mass Effect 2 in some major way. Hostage is a good one to take Kaiden with you on, though it isn't really a companion side quest. And I just like Major Kyle. There are some others I like too, but...well, the list would get long.

In addition to these, I'd say most of the ones on the Citadel and on planet hubs are worth doing. You don't want to miss out in Lorik Qui'in. That would be a shame. Indeed.

But flat-out ignore these quests: Turian Insignias, Prothean Data Discs, Signs of Battle, and Asari Writings. These generally involve driving the Mako to the far corner of an uncharted planet to click on a re-used asset and get a little bit of XP. No story. It's just more Mako than anybody wants, as they are almost always on the opposite end of the map as your mission objective.

I would say ignore the resources (ores and whatnot), but they do get you a good bit of money. Don't go out of your way, but don't avoid them either.

 

[80Maxwell08]

If you're willing to skip dialog, you can apparently get through the main plot in under two hours. If you actually want to listen to the dialog and take a little more time to kill some bad guys (and I'm assuming no DLC) it'd probably take more like 8-10 hours.

You'll miss minor stuff as mentione above, yes Conrad Verner is good for a laugh but he's hardly important and would you really care if you didn't see Helena Blake again in ME2? I wouldn't have. That said, we don't actually have any idea how that kind of stuff is going to affect ME3...

Um you could just get a save file from somewhere. Hold on...
http://www.masseffectsaves.com/
There you go. Saves for both ME1&2. Honestly you might miss a bit of characterization so here you go. Kaiden is wood that talks and Ashley is a racist. Since the rest of the cast is in ME2 I don't need to explain them much though I should mention Liara had a total 180 in her personality from ME1 to ME2. That was actually was the reason I stopped trying to romance her.

^ or this.

FWIW I think the change in Liara's character is explained for the most part by the trauma of losing Shepard and what she went through afterwards, which is explained a little more fully in Lair of the Shadow Broker. Plus remember she's not much more than a teenager by asari standards.

So basically in order for her character change to make sense I have to spend $5? Yeah I'm not going to do that. Though I am a little confused on why Bioware/EA didn't rerelease ME2 with all the DLC (I don't mean the PS3 version that didn't even have all the DLC then) especially now that ME3 is so close.

 

[Asita]

I just want to know how long it would take me to get through all of the main story bits of ME1, so as to get a savefile ready and be filled in on all the pre ME2 happenings.

Well, having just done an "ideal run" for ME and ME2, I can definitely sympathize. Cutting out some time by using a new-game+, I managed to do basically everything in Mass Effect (just in case any of them had an effect on ME3) in 22 hours (including the Bringing Down the Sky DLC). Do note that by the end I had an all new hatred for the Inventory system in that game, having long since gotten the best equipment for ALL of my characters, maxed out my funds and had a surplus of several hundred omni-gel I never used.

 

[DionysusSnoopy]

I would recommend properly going through ME1, it is difficult to go back to after ME2 but the side missions do come up in ME2 either through mail or running into the character. They tend not to interact woth you too much but you can chat and catch up. I hope they all link through to ME3. I don't know if steam has it the xbox had some DLC which was a short comic style intro and it allowed you to make the plot choices at the 4 points during the main quest.

 

[80Maxwell08]

I would recommend properly going through ME1, it is difficult to go back to after ME2 but the side missions do come up in ME2 either through mail or running into the character. They tend not to interact woth you too much but you can chat and catch up. I hope they all link through to ME3. I don't know if steam has it the xbox had some DLC which was a short comic style intro and it allowed you to make the plot choices at the 4 points during the main quest.

That comic is beyond horrible. It skips an entire world and doesn't really explain anything. The only reason I understood it is because I had already beaten ME a couple of times.

 

[ARMYMAN]

The Mako is either love or hate for most people hehe, i loved it but it's true it feels like it's made of superballs.As for the guns/armor, i preferred it in ME1 where you had a lot of stuff, ME2 streamlined equipment a lot, focusing on action.

If you want a "complete" femshep save for ME1 (all sub-missions done, all planets visited,Kaidan dead) i could send one of mine, though you can probably get some nice games through masseffectsaves.com

I know how you feel about the 'love or hate' thing. I'm the only person I know who enjoyed the planet mining sequences in ME2, haha. I don't know.. something was just therapeutic and satisfying about it.
For giggles,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-CDNLYZ0zA

 

[God's Clown]

I'd suggest just saying a ME1 save from that website, since you played ME2 first. It's near impossible to enjoy ME1's game play after playing 2.

 

[Mekado]

So basically in order for her character change to make sense I have to spend $5? Yeah I'm not going to do that. Though I am a little confused on why Bioware/EA didn't rerelease ME2 with all the DLC (I don't mean the PS3 version that didn't even have all the DLC then) especially now that ME3 is so close.

Just a quick comment to say lair of the shadow broker is probably the best DLC i ever bought, if there's one worth paying for (for any game) it's this one

 

[skywolfblue]

Skip the sidestuff. Seriously, the randomly generated planet terrain and copy-paste bases were horrid. (as well as the combat and inventory and the bugged all to hell cover system and the unbelievably bland talent trees... ok I might be getting off track.)

I'd say play it through once at least, just to witness the Virmire->Ilos->The Citadel(climax) part of the game, it has some good parts to see, and some stuff about the reapers that wasn't explained in ME2.

If you skip the side quests I think you can do it in under 10 hours.

 

[80Maxwell08]

So basically in order for her character change to make sense I have to spend $5? Yeah I'm not going to do that. Though I am a little confused on why Bioware/EA didn't rerelease ME2 with all the DLC (I don't mean the PS3 version that didn't even have all the DLC then) especially now that ME3 is so close.

Just a quick comment to say lair of the shadow broker is probably the best DLC i ever bought, if there's one worth paying for (for any game) it's this one

Well I've played ME2 so many times I'm outright sick of it. Seriously i can't even appreciate it for basically being Gears of War with the force anymore. I've beated it like 4 times and almost beaten it 4-5 more (if you are wondering why I had to do a system restore a couple of ties so I lost everything) so I'm not playing it again. Honestly ME3 doesn't look that enticing to me at all now so I just don't care anymore.

 

[RatRace123]

It's still 3 months away, that's plenty 'o time to play it to completion.

Of course, this is coming from someone who absolutely loves the first game, more than the second so I would obviously opt for playing it in full.

If you don't wish to do that, then as others have suggested, getting a pre-made save file is a good bet.

 

[Samus Aran but a man]

So, with the release of Mass Effect 3 fast approaching, I'd like to "prepare" for the Reapers' eventual landing by learning my history
I played ME2 and I thought that the gameplay was really good- both the combat and the whole aspect of 'choice' appealed to me. Also, the final mission. Wow!
It was the first Bioware game I'd played and I really liked it, so I went off to get ME1 with similar expectations. Ahh! Playing the most updated version on steam, I felt.. detached from gameplay. The immersion was ruined quickly when Kaiden ran around the battlefield screaming "ENEMIES ARE EVERYWHERE!!!" over and over again. I think it simply lacked all the overall polish of ME2. Also, I know there's people who would call me an RPG baby or whatever, but all the hardcore RPG stuff concerning weapons and upgrades just felt a bit clunky and perhaps a tad overdone. I can see how they watered it down in ME2 and why that might upset some, but frankly, who wants to read over stats on a pause menu?! Well, my question.. I just want to know how long it would take me to get through all of the main story bits of ME1, so as to get a savefile ready and be filled in on all the pre ME2 happenings.

\

just download saves; the game isn't that great

 

[William Ossiss]

Being a complete asshat, I accidentally erased all of my saves for mass effect and mass effect 2. 100% complete on both... Both beaten on highest difficulty... So i now have to go through all of it all over again, just to be back to where i was. Yay for a new year...


Oh what fun do i get to have in 2012. Oh joy upon joy... Oh well, that just means i can play many different characters this time, instead of just straight soldier.