The A.V. Club - Chris Dahlen, December 3rd, 2007:
"Role-playing-game addicts could easily ignore gameplay problems if the story kept delivering. Yet Mass Effect feels like the first two acts of a great space opera, and the main villain and the most intriguing parts of the backstory have been saved for a sequel. The non-player characters that hang around with you have also taken a major step back, with less dialogue and none of the spontaneous clashes (and subtle flirting) of BioWare's past high-water marks, Baldur's Gate II and Knights Of The Old Republic. The graphics keep improving, but the diehards would rather be immersed in the words."
Beyond the game: Mass Effect crams a lot of setting into a single game. Spend enough time reading up on the history and politics, and you'll start to see how much is hanging on a split-second decision.
Worth playing for: Panting over the lesbian sex scene will lead some players to pick a female protagonist. But the real reason to play a woman is the fantastic voicework by Jennifer Hale.
Frustration sets in when: All those side missions feel like a distraction while you're hurtling toward the destruction of the galaxy. But make sure to finish them before you get too far: Once the main story's over, you can't go back and explore what you missed.
Final judgment: A space opera with huge potential ends in a shrug.
A.V. Club Rating: B-
Thanks to their innovative approach to gaming, RPGs like Dark Souls, Final Fantasy VII, and Dragon Quest left a significant impact on the genre.
GF365: "A friend makes the adventure all the more fun. Here are the best video game companions that will keep you company."
The Mass Effect N7 Day teaser has already been decoded, and it features Liara T'Soni talking about The Council, and The Geth can be heard too.
Better not bring back Shepherd from the dead with some half assed space magic.
If you get your readiness level high enough in Mass Effect 3, *spoilers* you can see Shepard taking in a breath of air under some rubble. It would depend on whichever ending is canon.
I came here to say the indoctrination theory absolutely solidified the ending of this trilogy for me in the best way
@snowb420.
Yeah I saw that at the end of my play through as well. I think they will bring Shepard back….. or at least a mutant version turned villain. Lol
I guess.
Poor Mass Effect, it didn't live up to the hype. (And some people thought that was going to be GOTY, LOL!)
Honest Review, Respect......
even if it didn't live up to the hype.
Comments are coming from people who never played the game. The game is massive and screw this dudes opinion.. The game is an A (but not an A+) the only thing I can slack on this game is the texture pop-ins and loading hiccups. Which are a lot of the same things Oblivion sufferred from and guess what got game of the year???