Favorite game maybe, definitely played it the most
Mass Effect 2 is how you handle a sequel. In fact, it might be one of the greatest jumps in quality from one game to the next I've ever seen. It doesn't opt for the "bigger is better" approach that many sequels take, instead seeking to streamline what worked in the first game while ditching what didn't. In the process, it became a much more focused and enjoyable experience. It concerned itself less with being a subpar KOTOR and doubled down on being what it was really meant to be: a very solid Gearslike. I described the first Mass Effect as being a product of its time in the negative sense, whereas Mass Effect 2 is an example of how that phrase now can be used as a positive: If you're going to borrow from the best of the era, why not the pre-eminent third-person cover shooter that is Gears of War?
In addition to being a much more enjoyable shooter (god damn did they ever improve the feel and sounds of those guns, it makes a huge difference) Mass Effect 2 also nails its tone and setting in a way that makes the first game feel like a Playskool title. It's dark, it's grungy, it's seedy - it's all the little things you really want in a game that traffics in space fantasy. Hell, the massively improved lighting alone does a world of good in setting ME2's atmosphere. From the moment that first setpiece kicks off you know you're playing something that looks and feels much better than what came before.
Then you have your new squadmates. Top to bottom they are far more interesting and complex characters than the majority of their ME1 counterparts, and bring with them problems and scenarios that actually put the morals of your character to the test. This couples nicely with having Shepard be ingrained within a terrorist organization instead of a military one, giving you a more ambiguous but difficult situation to navigate. Also, somewhat surprising to me after my experience with the first game, this setup gave me far more avenues in which I felt like I was genuinely role-playing my character. Being able to play Space Punisher instead of different shades of Space Cop made a world of difference.
Very excited to see how they bungle all this in Mass Effect 3.
In addition to being a much more enjoyable shooter (god damn did they ever improve the feel and sounds of those guns, it makes a huge difference) Mass Effect 2 also nails its tone and setting in a way that makes the first game feel like a Playskool title. It's dark, it's grungy, it's seedy - it's all the little things you really want in a game that traffics in space fantasy. Hell, the massively improved lighting alone does a world of good in setting ME2's atmosphere. From the moment that first setpiece kicks off you know you're playing something that looks and feels much better than what came before.
Then you have your new squadmates. Top to bottom they are far more interesting and complex characters than the majority of their ME1 counterparts, and bring with them problems and scenarios that actually put the morals of your character to the test. This couples nicely with having Shepard be ingrained within a terrorist organization instead of a military one, giving you a more ambiguous but difficult situation to navigate. Also, somewhat surprising to me after my experience with the first game, this setup gave me far more avenues in which I felt like I was genuinely role-playing my character. Being able to play Space Punisher instead of different shades of Space Cop made a world of difference.
Very excited to see how they bungle all this in Mass Effect 3.
I still hate Jacob ...
One of the greatest video games of all time.
Mitada fodastica da bioware, uma evolução imensa ao primeiro jogo, simplesmente videogames.
HOLY SHIT
i didn’t beat ME2 yet, I’m like halfway through and this game is well on its way to breaking in to my top 5 of all time. Extraordinary.
i didn’t beat ME2 yet, I’m like halfway through and this game is well on its way to breaking in to my top 5 of all time. Extraordinary.
everything that was amazing about the first game is improved. gun play, graphics, characters, mission layout. it’s all fantastic. genuinely one of the greatest and most engaging stories i’ve ever played. only wish is that some of the characters from the first game had more importance, but i think the finale will give me that. the story grips you immediately with a wild ass opening, and it doesn’t slow down the entire time.
9.5/10
9.5/10
uno de los mejores juegos de toda la historia
Redondo en casi todo, tiene una historia que sin reinventar nada te atrapa, genialmente contada y con un elenco carismático y dónde notas el esfuerzo porque te importen. Como pega, me apena que sepas que siempre acabarás a tiros. Lo demás fetén (9,05)
O primeiro já é bem bom, mas esse é tão foda e coloca a barra tão no alto que dá até medo de saber oq vai rolar no 3 já que muita gente odeia o final aparentemente
best game ever?
A história é muito boa, não tem nenhum momento chato, os novos companheiros são ótimos (gostei muito do Thane, Samara, Miranda e Jack), porém o sistema de paragon/renegade ficou tão simples que parece um regresso em relação ao primeiro.
an incredible sequel that improves on almost everything from the first game.
The combat is so much better here, this is what I wished they could implement into the first with this remaster, a smoother combat experience just makes the whole game much more enjoyable
The story was also great, expanding this world even further, with some new characters added to the roster. I also liked the ability to do missions for those characters, I felt so much more connected to my crew by the end.
Idk how to avoid certain aspects of the ending, but I’m surprised it went there, it’s a bold choice for a game like this and it honestly worked, I was devastated
The biggest complaint for me was the transferring of my Shepard, I imported him from my save in the first game and they butchered his face, I wish there was an option to go in and customise, as I had to spend the entire game with basically no eyebrows, after they were extremely dark in the first game, it just took me out of the experience whenever it zoomed in on his face
The combat is so much better here, this is what I wished they could implement into the first with this remaster, a smoother combat experience just makes the whole game much more enjoyable
The story was also great, expanding this world even further, with some new characters added to the roster. I also liked the ability to do missions for those characters, I felt so much more connected to my crew by the end.
Idk how to avoid certain aspects of the ending, but I’m surprised it went there, it’s a bold choice for a game like this and it honestly worked, I was devastated
The biggest complaint for me was the transferring of my Shepard, I imported him from my save in the first game and they butchered his face, I wish there was an option to go in and customise, as I had to spend the entire game with basically no eyebrows, after they were extremely dark in the first game, it just took me out of the experience whenever it zoomed in on his face
Very solid update to the game, which brings in all the DLC into one cohesive experience.
I know everyone loves this game a whole lot, because it became more of a cover based shooter, but that's exactly what I didn't want changed. Also, this game basically doesn't move the metaplot of the series at all. Like if you just deleted ME2 out of the middle you could pretty easily stitch together the ending of ME1 to the starting of ME3 and things would be approximately the same. There's some fun character parts, but there's also some really gross character parts. So, who can say if it's good or bad, I guess.
Review in progress:
Solid storytelling paired with underwhelming third-person shooter gameplay and dumbed-down RPG elements. The gameplay is an improvement over Mass Effect 1 but still leaves a lot to be desired. I wish there were alternatives to combat to handle some of the situations (e.g., diplomacy). Instead, you have to shoot down endless waves of brain-dead enemies every time.
Solid storytelling paired with underwhelming third-person shooter gameplay and dumbed-down RPG elements. The gameplay is an improvement over Mass Effect 1 but still leaves a lot to be desired. I wish there were alternatives to combat to handle some of the situations (e.g., diplomacy). Instead, you have to shoot down endless waves of brain-dead enemies every time.
Playtime: 36 Hours
Score: 9/10
My personal favorite game in the Mass Effect trllogy!
To start with what I liked, I loved the vibe and atmosphere of this game. While the first game was very bright and hopeful, kind of like Mass Effect's New Hope, this game is more Empire Strikes Back, with its darker color palete and you having to operate in the shadows with the shadey corporation known as Cerebrus. This is especially apparent when you go to places like Omega that just give off that cool sinister vibe.
Gameplay wise, this title overhauls much of what was in the first game. Gone is the more open map exploration in favor of more linear mission based gameplay. You now gather resources by shooting probes down at planets, which can be boring at times but its definitely better then driving around in the mako on very empty feeling planets. Classes are also a lot more specialised this time around as you no longer will be carrying the same 4 weapon types around. I personally opted for the infiltrator class which let me have sniper rifles, pistols, SMGs and a heavy weapon. Shooting is also much more improved from the first game and the cover mechanics feel a lot better this time around. You also get twice the amount of companions, with two of them being DLC but if you have the legendary edition, then its all just included. Overall I liked the line up a lot more this time around with way more new interesting companions plus Garrus and Tali returning. Miranda and Jacob can feel a little bit like Ashley and Kaidan 2.0, but there still infinitely more interesting then those other two. All of them come with very cool loyality missions that I loved going on. Some were better then others, but its a good way to give an interesting character arc for each of them and not make them feel like souless bodyguards. And Garrus will always be my #1!
The storytelling is much improved with better writing as well as cooler choices for you to make. I liked the updated Paragon and Renegade system, with you being able to do certain actions while a character is talking to you via QTE prompts. While I went mostly paragon in my playthrough, I still loved doing the renegade actions like punching the reporter (again) or shooting a bad guy during their evil monologue. My only complaint is that I feel like they don't give you enough time during those QTE prompts, as I missed out on a few chances.
As for negatives, there aren't that many for me. I wish exploration was a bit better, as you can run into a lot of invisible walls during missions that can be very immersion breaking. Also whenever you need to climb up a ledge or a step, Shepard always has to duck behind cover and then vault over it. I get that they would want you to do that during combat but when there's no action going on, I should just be able to climb up a ledge normally. Doing a stylish vault over each time is like so extra lol
Overall though, this is a near perfect game for me and truly is Bioware at their peak. Looking forward to finishing all of this off with Mass Effect 3!
All Games I have Played and Reviewed Ranked - https://www.backloggd.com/u/JudgeDredd35/list/all-games-i-have-played-and-reviewed-ranked/
Score: 9/10
My personal favorite game in the Mass Effect trllogy!
To start with what I liked, I loved the vibe and atmosphere of this game. While the first game was very bright and hopeful, kind of like Mass Effect's New Hope, this game is more Empire Strikes Back, with its darker color palete and you having to operate in the shadows with the shadey corporation known as Cerebrus. This is especially apparent when you go to places like Omega that just give off that cool sinister vibe.
Gameplay wise, this title overhauls much of what was in the first game. Gone is the more open map exploration in favor of more linear mission based gameplay. You now gather resources by shooting probes down at planets, which can be boring at times but its definitely better then driving around in the mako on very empty feeling planets. Classes are also a lot more specialised this time around as you no longer will be carrying the same 4 weapon types around. I personally opted for the infiltrator class which let me have sniper rifles, pistols, SMGs and a heavy weapon. Shooting is also much more improved from the first game and the cover mechanics feel a lot better this time around. You also get twice the amount of companions, with two of them being DLC but if you have the legendary edition, then its all just included. Overall I liked the line up a lot more this time around with way more new interesting companions plus Garrus and Tali returning. Miranda and Jacob can feel a little bit like Ashley and Kaidan 2.0, but there still infinitely more interesting then those other two. All of them come with very cool loyality missions that I loved going on. Some were better then others, but its a good way to give an interesting character arc for each of them and not make them feel like souless bodyguards. And Garrus will always be my #1!
The storytelling is much improved with better writing as well as cooler choices for you to make. I liked the updated Paragon and Renegade system, with you being able to do certain actions while a character is talking to you via QTE prompts. While I went mostly paragon in my playthrough, I still loved doing the renegade actions like punching the reporter (again) or shooting a bad guy during their evil monologue. My only complaint is that I feel like they don't give you enough time during those QTE prompts, as I missed out on a few chances.
As for negatives, there aren't that many for me. I wish exploration was a bit better, as you can run into a lot of invisible walls during missions that can be very immersion breaking. Also whenever you need to climb up a ledge or a step, Shepard always has to duck behind cover and then vault over it. I get that they would want you to do that during combat but when there's no action going on, I should just be able to climb up a ledge normally. Doing a stylish vault over each time is like so extra lol
Overall though, this is a near perfect game for me and truly is Bioware at their peak. Looking forward to finishing all of this off with Mass Effect 3!
All Games I have Played and Reviewed Ranked - https://www.backloggd.com/u/JudgeDredd35/list/all-games-i-have-played-and-reviewed-ranked/