Mass Defect: Why Mass Effect falls short of its hype

By Dean Takahashi of the San Jose Mercury News
Friday, December 28th, 2007

"I've been a been anticipating Mass Effect ever since I saw the first demo of the game in Amsterdam at the X05 unveiling of the Xbox 360's first slate of games. This was the first next-generation game that I saw with the highest of ambitions: crossing the uncanny valley. The valley is the familiar problem of computer-generated images. The closer they approach reality, the more disturbing the images are, particularly human faces. By trying to do good human facial animation, the developers at BioWare endeavoured to make games as emotionally interesting and visually appealing as movies. As such, this game promised a big leap forward in cinematic storytelling and game play.

It delivered on the first, but not on the second. While the conversational system and facial animation is perhaps the best I've ever seen in a video game, the game play is maddeningly flawed. Call it Mass Defect."

[Silver360]

It is a role playing game. You level up your skill and weapons in RPGs. If you have ever played a RPG you know better than to fight a big boss when you are at a low level. Bioware has made almost every level available to explore, but that doesn't mean you will succeed on those levels.

[Odion]

I agree, the combat isn't a real shooter its still an RPG, they just make it look and feel like a shooter, which frankly i think makes it a lot more fun, theres nothing cooler then doing a massive throw, tossing 4 enemies back then you and your squad charging forward and turning them to green dust with your chemically induced shotgun!

[killax3563]

In RPG's, the combat system is the glue that holds the game together. If the combat system sucks then the RPG sucks. Simple as that.

Because in an average-length RPG (15-20 hrs) a player is likely to fight well over 100 battles (very conservative estimate) thus the combat system (which will be used during all 100+ battles) better be good.

[Bombomb]

imo, in RPG's it's the story that keeps the game together. The gameplay and combat system with other elements just Tie in.

I've played RPGs with weak combat system butt he games still rocked because the STORY kept me going. Not how many different way to kill a monster. You level up anyways and you get stronger as you go.

Look at Final Fantasy 7, some didn't like the "materia combat sytem" but they still loved the game. none the less the Story was the sh$t.

If you look at RPG's the combat system is what most devs try to differentiate themselves from others. some are Ok, some takes time getting used to, but not everyone is gonna like a certain combat system. you will find gamers debating over combat systems, with so many different rpgs that do it differently.

If your an RPG gamer then you know what they are talking about.

[FCOLitsjustagame]

I hated the combat at first too, then I started to actually think about what I was doing and realized it was actually quite good. Some people have issues with the thinking and just want to mindlessly shoot, thats not going to work. It is also critical to level up and set your team up with the correct equipment...this is not uncommon in RPGs.

[lonestarmt]

15-20 hours average rpg length? hahahahah

sorry man you dont' play a lot of rpgs do you?? maybe for the .hack series or dbz and naruto rpgs on the ds. haha.

[BLACKJACK VII]

You are completely wrong. An action or shooter type of game is dependant on gameplay. For massive Role Playing Games, story & dialogue, i.e. interaction with other characters, is THE most important element in an RPG. Second would be the leveling up system or tree provided to track your experience & reward your choices in all those dialogues & story driven elements. Gameplay would be 3rd at best for an RPG, in fact, graphics could be as important as gameplay for this particular genre.

MASS EFFECT = THE BEST STORY TOLD THIS GENERATION BAR NONE.

It also is easily a 30+ hour experience PER playthrough, with tons of replayability, excellent graphics & GOOD gameplay FOR AN RPG.

As an action RPG, Mass Effect is EXCEPTIONAL. An RPG will not have gameplay equivalent to the tight controls you would find in Bioshock. 35 hour games usually have a glitch or two, & Mass Effect is no exception.

[Legion]

The combat elements of Mass Effect are great. The reviewer has no idea what he is talking about.

He obviously has never played through the game properly. You can't treat it like a straight up shooter. You got team memebrs that you control. I have had little problem dealing with the fights that he was spending 3hrs on???? Holy crap he sucks...!!! He complains because he can't play worth crap, that is funny.

He gives himself away when he mentions the scene with the emotional choice that needs to be made between friends. If he has not even gotten there yet then he is at a very low level. And he wonders why he is having issues defeating guys (other than his lame... use the shotgun theory), that's like trying to attack a Balrog with a butter knife. He needs to find a new job.

[GIJeff]

FF7 was the best and is the best because:

1) Graphics were the best ever
2) Combat was perfect for the game
3) Emotion was in the game
4) The main badass wasnt too cheesy
5) And the story wasnt afraid to do things that upset people.

So yea, the story was great, but seriously, if the combat was too bad, i couldnt have sat through all 80 hours of my first play through.

[iLemon]

Why Dean Takahashi never quite makes it as a gamer.

[titntin]

He is harsh - I really enjoyed this and didn't find it too difficult.

But it was flawed, and its only right that some people will point out the obvious problems with an otehrwise brilliant game. Most will choose to overlook the issues, but for some it will be a show stopper.

[Pain70]

frame rate, loading at times got a little old, and assignments being somewhat the same sure as hell didn't take away anything for me. to be honest, i'm really not a rpg guy, but i was kind of sad after i finished this game. this turned into a 25 hr. nightly routine for me. i'm waiting for ME2!!! maybe i'll give Oblivion a shot. Great Game!

[MK_Red]

Agreed but let's not forget that many of great games are seriously flawed. The important thing is how the good parts overshadow the bad ones.

I find it stupid how people believe Oblivion was the best RPG in years even though it had more bugs, flaws and problems than most of recent RPGs like Mass Effect. Oblivion was buggy with many AI and quest issues (Remember the stupid Vampire one!?) along with lots of combat and other problems. It was also really simplified and console friendly compared to previous TES games and was seriously shallow compared to classic RPGs.
Yes people praised and worshipped it anc considered Oblivion worthy of hype. Now we have a much better and deeper RPG with superb classic dialogue tree, a huge huge original world with many interesting characters and a non-linear story.
People call it Mass Defect. Why? Because they don't like the combat. I think most of them haven't played an RPG in their lives.

Any real RPG fan should instantly spot the brilliance and sheer quality of Mass Effect. It's flawed but what game isn't?

[GIJeff]

soooo boring. Id rather watch grass grow, then die, then grow then die again than sit through another minute of oblivions lame ass. *sigh* i want my 5 hours back oblivion!

[TunakTunakTun]

its on the 3fixme

[rootEXT]

Well retards this " Mass Defect " won Game of the Year somewhere, forgot which site. Envious Fanboy aren't you?

[Lumbo]

It is sad, that the reviewer did not like or grasp the RPG element of the game. But then if you present the game as a FPS you shouldn't wonder about people playing it like a FPS.

[InMyOpinion]

When did Bioware present Mass Effect as a FPS?

Is Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion also an FPS, since it's played from first person viewpoint?

[ThaGeNeCySt]

Mass Effect is played from the First Person perspective?

[InMyOpinion]

Mass Effect is played from a 3rd person perspective, but the whole idea behind calling it a FPS instead of a RPG is just ridicolous.

"Hey look! It does not have random enemy encounters or turn-based battles! It must be a FPS!"

[JokesOnYou]

Dean Takahashi:
"It delivered on the first, but not on the second. While the conversational system and facial animation is perhaps the best I’ve ever seen in a video game, the game play is maddeningly flawed. Call it Mass Defect."

-I stopped reading after that statement, sure I agree it had flaws but its still managed to be one of the best games I ever played, so "Mass Defect" its not, but maybe he rather Bioware just made a simple turned based jrpg or your avg shooter, people always yapping about devs doing something new, and when they do the same people complain like hell when devs do go the extra mile and make a game that raises the bar in so many aspects, the game could be 95% greatness but they only want to talk about the 5% they didn't like about it, sure I wish the game wasn't flawed at all, but I appreciate what Bioware accomplished and in the end, the flaws are waaaay outdone by the greatness, aaahh well lifes a b!tch.

JOY

[marc 1975]

i was umin and ah ing to get this game due to some negative reports.. then i thought what the heck i want it in my collection... i have had no big framrate issues as yet. the game feels fresh which is good ... some say its slow paced... yes it is but its ment to be.. the graphics are good.. the dialogue is the best ive ever seen soz heard lol... i would recommend this to a few of my mates but not all.. if you want a deep rpg this is a must if you want action cod 4 halo3 and bioshock spring to mind

[athlon770]

Thank you, I am also on the fence with this game. When I first heard of it, I thought "sweet, a mmorpg that I could get into", then I found out it was only going to be single player and was crushed. After reading about the frame rate issues (amongst other things) I have pretty much written this off and concentrated on picking up games for my PS3. But everytime I watch one of the trailers I downloaded, I just want to play the game. Your comment was the first to shed a good light on the game without bashing anything else...I guess I will use some of the Christmas money I received and pick M.E. up.

Thanks for being honest and have a safe New Years!

[marc 1975]

this game is worthy a rent first then if you like buy it .. i just bought it and trusted my 1st instincts

[allforcalisto]

for me the combat varies.

Its weird for me how he mentions that bit on feros. thats the exact part that i'm up to.

the halo thing shows he can't really get into it. Halo is halo. expecting that from a third person rpg/actioner like mass is silly.

sometimes the combat is really fun and engaging, other times i feel like there's no real point in customizing anything as most enemies go down after a few shotgun rounds. (that dude must of really sucked if his teammates kept dying that much against those weird asari.

so far i'm seeing myself giving it a solid 8, but in fairness to the game i'm only 6 or so hours in and i've a few sidequest here n there. there have been some really cool moments.

my crits:

- the mako is an abomination

- the dialogue and interaction with characters is a bit cold.

- unlike bioshock or halo i'm not thrilled during combat and cutscenes(ingame cutscenes in the case of bioshock. or just the random wailing of the splicers.).

[Kick The Ass]

He says that he wants the actual gameplay to be more like Halo?
GET A GRIP!

Halo is great, yeah, but FPS in a roleplay game?

This guy is ridiculous.
I've played the game, and my first impression is VRY GOOD YA!

[InMyOpinion]

All games have their flaws, this is what's called nit-picking.

If you compare it to say Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, it's nowhere near as flawed. I don't get why people love to hate Mass Effect so much? Maybe because it's in fact really really good and they are jealous?

[THAMMER1]

I will not get into detail here because this game does all the talking for it self. But I hated RPG's before MASS EFFECT. This game can be misunderstood as just an action shooter like FEAR or a tactical shooter like GRAW. I have found that less experienced gamers are the people who poorly misjudge this game.

This game is an RPG and a well crafted story that I enjoyed just as much as the BIO SHOCK story and had fun like I was playing Mega Man2 when I was 7 or 8. This article is proof that some people choose to take a negative approach to positive things to get attention.

I love you HaterZ!!!

[Zhuk]

Mass Effect is the most brilliant new title out on the market this year and Only on Xbox 360, already selling over a million copies, more than nearly every single PS3 game ever released.

Only Xbox 360 provides brilliant new IPs such as Mass Effect which truly get gamers excited, unlike Unwanted and Borehawk which both flopped critically and financially

As an RPG fan I found everything in this title to my liking, including the combat. My soldier is well over Level 50 now and the combat system works fantastic

[Mr PS3]

Ha Ha you are one stupid delusional aussie pr1ck
Stick to shaggin kangaroo's and drinkin your crap aussie fosters beer and keep on hoping that the rest of the world is listnig to anythin coming from a person that come's from the land that give us ??
I'm stuck on that can anyone help
Oh i know
Neighbours
Kylie
The worst cricket team ever
croc dundee

[Jdoki]

Ah Zhuk. It's this type of blind fanboyism that makes it such a delight to read the comments on this site.

I love Mass Effect too, but to deny it's many flaws just makes you look a bit... well, silly really. It seems to me you are happy to paper over the flaws in any game which is 360 exclusive. How sad that you are missing out on some great gaming experiences on 'other' consoles because of your staunch (and vaguely worrying) love of a particular inanimate electrical device.

It's tragically impressive how you manage have a dig at the PS3 regardless of the original story.

Perhaps you have a future in politics.

[RacingX]

Zhuk, do you actually believe yourself???? You are nothing more than a M$ PR machine....you are ignorantly hilarious. Everytime you spew forth more of your rhetoric I'm waiting for the xbox logo to spin up at the end. Do you talk to women like this?? or do you have them your credit card number first before they even talk to you?? A no-talent a$$clown.....give us all a break would ya...

[Ravenator529]

And the reason why is because he missed the part where Mass Effect is an RPG not a FPS.

BioWare never inteded this game to play like Halo because Halo is a FPS with zero RPG elements whatsoever. Halo is a great game due to the fact that it was built from the ground up to be the best FPS that Bungie could create.

BioWare designed Mass Effect as an RPG from the ground up. People who buy this game thinking they are buying a Halo RPG, are going to be sadly mistaken.

If you ever played KOTOR, then you know what type of experience you are in store for. BioWare has done a great job of taking the old stale "turn-based" RPG gameplay element and created a more intense "on the fly" gameplay element for the RPG. Yes, at times it can be frustrating, but welcome to the world of RPG's. There is a ton of trial and error when it comes to RPG battle.

It's not uncommon in an RPG to have to re-do a battle numerous times before you figure out the right combinations or direction. And even when you finally defeat the boss or battle, most of your party has probably parrished and you are left on the brink of death. Again, welcome to the world of RPG's!

Another thing that I don't understand is that supposedly this guy has been "on top" of Mass Effect's development from the beginning. Yet, he seems to have no idea that Mass Effect was an RPG. You didn't need to play the game to see that IMO.

Obviously this guy has never played a BioWare game in his life. I think a required pre-requisite of reviewing this game should have been to play at least one other BioWare style RPG. And then make a judgement.

Instead he sounds like a moron because it's obvious that he was looking to play a FPS shooter. Not a RPG.

Your review fails!

The only thing I'll agree with is that the framerate is pretty bad. You do get used to it after a little while but it is very noticeable.

Oh, and the Mako is a nightmare to control at times. There was the part in Noveria (the snow planet) where you literally had to dodge multiple rockets while trying to shoot and control the mako a the same time. I died numerous times due to the Mako controls.

[Mr PS3]

Well Quite simple
Because its crap!!

[tmatte]

Says the user with the name "Mr PS3".

[Dukester101]

This no-name guy... Dean needs to learn how to grow up and play a game.

RPGs have been a long time favorite of mine since I started playing video games. Oblivion is still currently my favorite 360 game, but ME is looking to knock it to 2nd.

It's an RPG first and foremost; it requires making the right decisions, not only in battle, but in conversation, and more importantly where your characters (and your squads) level-up points go.

I've only been playing the game for 2 days, but I've enjoyed every minute it of it. There are some minor frame rate drops, but nothing significant. The Eden Prime (tutorial) was a steep learning curve for the combat system. You have to have a good team (requires thought), good upgrades (requires thought), and skill to battle in ME. Using your talents, and those of your squad make the combat so much easier. Having a tech, a soldier, and a biotic as a squad is a great way to take down the enemy in battle.

I'm guessing that... Dean... hasn't used his brain much. You can't just go mindless through hallways and corridors in ME like you can in a shooter. Shooters are designed to be quick on the trigger, use flanking maneuvers and raw firepower. ME is not a shooter, it's an RPG; a game requiring thought, tactical superiority, and diversity.

I'm a Halo freak through and through. Halo is an FPS though. That's what it's designed for, and that's how it plays. Saying that ME should have Halo 3 gameplay doesn't make sense. This guy really has to be a total idiot to think that you can toss FPS style gameplay mechanics in a full out RPG...

[Bladestar]

People move on... nothing to see here.. just the daily Sony fanboy of bull $h!t... they need to read every day that makes them not want to kill themselves for knowing that the xbox 360 is the console to own if you want AAA titles.

There is no need to explain or argue with these Sony fanboys losers... the game reviews plus the game awards it earned(mmm... RPG game of the year) should be enough for these rouches to stop making these stupid commnents... Don't you have some Lair to play?

[ActionBastard]

I'm too busy with Yaris.

[segasage]

a RABID FPS gamer looking to Shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot and shoot some more without thinking, don't play these types of games.

this is not UT3, halo or gears of war.

Rabid disagreeer trolling on hand..

[lonestarmt]

"facial animation is perhaps the best I’ve ever seen in a video game"

I don't mean to troll here, or say mass effect isn't a great game, because it is, but best facial animation? sorry, I have to say hell no. Obviously he has not played heavenly sword. Hands down best facial animation, better in fact that most cgi movies.

[Silver Bull3t]

Fuk this guy. I've been loving every second of this game, and am glad that all the "terrible problems" with framerate and texture pop-in have been WAY overblown imo. Even the dreaded "elevator loads" at least usually offer up important character dialogue or news reports. (If you don't like the elevaor rides just use the Citadel Mass transit, duh).

As for the combat, once you figure out this is NOT GEARS or HALO you're fine. So far the story is great and very well developed.

If he has such a huge beef with the combat then he should go play Resistance, Gears, Crysis or any other FPS out there.

ME is a GREAT GAME, and it has at least 2 MORE INSTALLMENTS to iron out the remaining bugs. Can't wait to get home and play some more.

[mintaro]

this is bs, mass effect is an rpg first and fps second. and since it is and rpg first u cant just rush in and expect to shoot the hell out of everyone, and expect to suceed everytime.

[Robearboy]

Been drawn into a game this much since Bio shock, the story and depth of this game has me hooked line and sinker, mass defect my ass

[cartman313]

I would probably like it. I need to borrow my friends 360.

[Nevers]

...like everyone else (that matters) has stated. It's not a shoot em up. Eden Prime was the hardest level for me cuz I had to break outta the shooter-mode. The combat system was strange at first but by about half way thru EP I was good to go... took me half way thru the game to find that cannon for the Maco on the bumper button though. Thresher Maws woulda been way easier if I wouldn't have machine gunned em to death forever.

... but this guy should start with some "RPG's" that are more like Orcs and Elves.

edit>

... the only criticism I really have is the repetition of the bases you infiltrate on the "assignments" Same layout, same furniture, same enemies. Would have liked to see a little more variety in the environments asside from the mind-numbing mountain crawling for minerals parts.

[TrenchaunT]

I def. think Mass Effect is flawed, but this reviewer seems pretty stupid. I mean, one of my complaints is that it's too darn easy! The Asari clones took me maybe three tries the first time, just because I had no biotics protection, but if you just tell your teammates not to rush in they don't die that much--and I did't even give them many upgrades. I haven't had any battle in Mass Effect that I would really consider a challenge. Most of the enemies die really easy, and when you get a little bit into the game it's easy to purcahse super weapons. The battle system sucks, but it sure isn't hard. I speak as a person who's very experienced with both American and Japanese RPGs, and I think Mass Effect is a bit overrated. In addition to the weak combat, the side missions lack the thrill and originality of Fallout, for example. But no one can argue that the main storyline dialogue isn't amazing.

[poopface1]

I saw a video and thought the shooting was kinda cool considering what I remember from knights of the old republic. am I correct when i say that it is a rpg that doesent completly revolve around turn based combat. If so it sounds like a cool idea to me. seems like this guy was expecting this game to be gears of war in space or something. Im still looking foward to playing this regardless of what some newspaper guy says. Oh yeah and you above are right if you think this reviewer is an idiot. Is this game ever in first person, besides mabe sniping. I mean ive never played it but all the shooting ive see has been from 3rd person. once again people who have no idea about video games are reviewing them.

[DJ]

I've heard these exact complaints from countless reviewers already.

[NanoGeekTech]

OVERRATED..................... .................

Personally I guess I am a game snob...But a game that has been in development for so long can be so Blahhhhhhhhhhhhhh......

--I like sci-fi but Mass Effect did nothing for me but bore me to death...I felt to combat was totally lacking.....if you are going to implement shooting mechanics into your RPG please make it enjoyable...

--I believe that a good combat system does help or hinders a RPG..And after playing games like COD4,Folklore,Bioshock,and Uncharted..... My exceptions for this game was thru the roof..

--This game was as much as a let down to me as LAIR was for PS3........

--This game could of been so much better so much more engaging......

--I may be one of the few rebels that really do not like this game....

--I do not think it deserves game of the year at all......

--Game of the year should excel in Gameplay,graphics,sound,design and production value....ME does not reach or exceeds all of these categories.

--Game of the year should be:
Uncharted
COD4
Bioshock
or Mario Galaxy(I did not play this do not have a Wii but I will make an educated guess and insist that MG is a great game.)

--Uncharted, COD4 and Bioshock are all great polish games with very very limited flaws... Mario Galaxy(I have not played but I will presume its will be the same)

--P.S. bring on the disagrees..........I am ready.....its only my opinion %)

[Silver Bull3t]

better when it was released as Pitfall in the 80s ;)

And yes, you are the only one that thinks ME was overRATED. OverHYPED, perhaps, but the ratings it received were all spot-on the money imo.

[HCS]

Some of these critics comments and logics are just completely absurb and idiotic. people are idiots, and hype themselves up to ridicilous levels. Their just games people, and every game has flaws, their built by humans. I want to create a blog about how Uncharted is Unfinished but i feel like it's a waste of my time. He compared it to Halo, what a douche. Mass Effect is the most replayable game out there and the best bioware has ever done, which is no small feat considering they made baldurs gate, jade empire and kotor.

Mass Effect >>>>> Bioshock

[cpuchess]

I played it for one day and all the conversation options bored me to tears. Just waiting for good game to trade it in on.

[Silver Bull3t]

Does everyone born after 1980 have ADD???

Next time try maybe renting or researching it before dropping coin on it goof. All that allowance saved for naught.... tisk.

[Pain]

but..the game is just a Xbox 1 game with super 512 Ram polish stuck on dvd9 (say what u want but its true)

But the real Let down is the Hype, dont mater what system. lol Vista anyone :P or hell real life lol

reallife:: Sex is going to be fun!! yea wooo yippy!!
realife after sex:: i feel kida icky....

See hype sucks

edit @29.1 Lmao

[HarryEtTubMan]

I'm gonna rent this and see whats up... my friends just say its boring and the dialougue is corny... I love RPG's though so maybe I'll love it.

[liquidsnake]

I havent played this game yet, but western RPG's are just sucky. It's Japaneese all the way. (Im from Sweden)

[BLACKJACK VII]

This article fails. An action or shooter type of game is dependant on gameplay. For massive Role Playing Games, story & dialogue, i.e. interaction with other characters, is THE most important element in an RPG. Second would be the leveling up system or tree provided to track your experience & reward your choices in all those dialogues & story driven elements. Gameplay would be 3rd at best for an RPG, in fact, graphics could be as important as gameplay for this particular genre.

MASS EFFECT = THE BEST STORY TOLD THIS GENERATION BAR NONE.

It also is easily a 30+ hour experience PER playthrough, with tons of replayability, excellent graphics & VERY GOOD gameplay FOR AN RPG.

As an action RPG, Mass Effect is EXCEPTIONAL & any real gamer will find it be a treasure if you like RPG's at all. An RPG will not have gameplay equivalent to the tight controls you would find in Bioshock. 35+ hour games usually have a glitch or two, & Mass Effect is no exception. Besides, if this game had no glitches or problems whatsoever & the shooting elements were as perfect as a true shooter genre game, the haters would all still be whining & crying because MASS EFFECT would have swept every GOTY award across the board.

Be careful what you wish for, if MASS EFFECT 2 tights the screws on the gameplay & cleans up the other small niggles, it will smoke every other game this generation. Period.

BIOWARE RULES.

[zapass]

a massively overhyped mess with a massive design identity crisis hidden behind some massively oversized candy that the box has massive difficulties to slide on screen.

you don't try to innovate, you just innovate or just don't bother.
you guys are so forgiving: a massive marketing dream!

[power of Green]

Looks like this guy is late to the party, very late!. I guess we'll be listening to everybody and their mama's opinion about this game for years to come.

you can find issues with all games its the grand spector we call ME that has every two bit nobody trying to weigh in. The game got too much attention for its new state of the art tech it wasn't really hyped untill before release. People were just excited about it(LAir, Heavenly sword, GT5 and MGS4 are hyped).

[power of Green]

All we gamers need to be concerned with is Bioware gave us something great and we should be thankful they pushed the limits to the best of their abilities to give us something more nextgen than 99.99% of games and that the next ones can only get better.

[Blademask]

What next gen technical innovations has Mass Effect made?

[ben806]

im loving the fact this game is still making the news, it goes to testify that some people think its reputation is so great it needs to be smeared somehow.
personally i loved the game, i really liked the combat system i really dont see why some people dont like it,
i cant stand the whole wait your turn then fight rpg's.

[GUNS N SWORDS]

it does have texture pop up, it's because the game is using all the ram the 360 can muster for textures ( which variates from 256 up to 440, the 360 needs at least 60 to 70 for main system )

[ThaGeNeCySt]

Mass Effect >>>>>>>&g t;>>

[pshizle]

DONT LISTEN TO THIS GUY HE IS JUST A NOOB

[NanoGeekTech]

I rented...Mass Effect....I always rent before I buy...certain games I have just bought..without ever renting...

--Blockbuster is my friend no late fees.......................

--I would recommend that anyone that has an interest in this game RENT IT FIRST.........................

------If I was to describe my relationship and joy factor in Mass Effect with one word it would be "BLAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"

---Best story of the year Bioshock, Folklore, and Uncharted.....Heavenly Sword(I believe this game captured emotion better than any game I have played...)

--Personally Heavenly Sword has the best cinematics I have seen in any game.....it truly captures or resonates the emotions of each characters......

--Hope they do not forget the FUN factor in Mass Effect 2..I may give that a chance....

[power of Green]

Agreed! forget what the Sony fanatics think.

[FrostyMelon]

Even with it's flaws, it's an awesome game. I just finished it last night, and all I can say is - WOW! This game is well worth it.

[Foliage]

"If you’re into good game play as much as I am, you should forget about this one."

"But the game play is so flawed that it’s just not worth it to finish it."

"This feels like you’re playing a game from the 1930s. And yes, I know they didn’t have video games in the 1930s."

At least the hype settled. If only 360 publishers spent less time on marketing, and more time on making their games playable.

The funny part of all this is that some people thought this deserved GOTY. Talk about delusional.

[Legion]

And you tell me how liking the game to a game from the 1930's is good journalism? He is comparing it to something thast doesn't exist. What the hell is he trying to say... other then trying to just make a statement of some ridicules idea that this game feels OLD??? Where the hell does he pull that from? Directly from his ass, I say.

Those who haven't played the game (and no, he obviously hasn't played the game, but instead walked his way through a few areas while looking for things to complain about) always talk about how it shouldn't have been thought of for GOTY... play it before you judge it.

You might find yourself a fan of the game instead of just the usual FANBOY life you exist.

[i Shank u]

who are you going to listen to? some journalist posing as a gamer for his job? or gamers who play the game just for the sake of playing

[Vespertine]

I don't fully understand why this news was approved. Does anyone need to be reminded that this game isn't absolutely perfect? Is any game absolutely perfect?

The answer is no, and this news has no reason to be on this site.
Everyone knows the game is flawed, but the good definitely outweighs the bad. Mass Effect shines with greatness, but definitely has flaws.

[Covenant]

I think people were expecting a shooter with RPG elements, and instead got an RPG with shooter elements.

I don't care about the hype, the reviews, or whatever. All I know is that the game has consumed about 50 hours of my life over the past few weeks.

[Reanimator]

I truly love this game. When I first started, I had the same problems the reviewer had, and could not stand the combat system. The conversations did seem somewhat boring. However, I had been waiting for this game for a long time. Not being a real RPG fan, I was looking forward to something new..., the blending of RPG and combat...., soooo, I did something I have not done in a couple of years. I bought the Mass Effect Guide book!!! After reading just what the classes were about, and a little about each character, and the weapons (I ride the subway to and from work each day, 50 minute round trip, so I had time to focus on the book), I started over, recreated my character as an Infiltrator, followed some of the hints, and i began to get hooked! I only read the walk-throughs AFTER I had completed that mission. The most important hint I picked up is: the more side-quests you complete, the stronger your character becomes, the better your weapon choices, and the better you get at using the combat system!
Now I am loving this game. I play it every night, have over 50 hours in, have gone back to some previous saves and replayed some missions because I did not feel good about the choices I made or actions I took. The story is awesome, some dialog and actions by my squadmates were incredible, unbelievable, and are downright shocking at times. The scene when Wrex gets pissed over the Krogan army experiments, and draws his weapon on me. Wow!!! Then my partner just walks up and.... (I can't spoil it for those who have not played, but...) I was in shock!!! So much so, after a few more hours of playing, I had to stop, go back to a previous save, complete a few more side-missions (including Family Armour), then start that mission over again. The results were much more to my liking. That in itself is a classic example of why I love this game. What you do, how you do it, when you do it, and why you do it, and what you say while doing it, really does make a difference. As you play it through, you have to make strong decisions on actions and dialog, that can change both the game, and the character you are interacting with. Right now I'm trying to stretch out the game, as I think I'm coming to the end, so I gonna finish all the side missions before I go to Ilos.
As I told all my friends and co-workers who game, "It's like playing a movie! I know you have heard that said before, but this is the first time it is really true!!!!!" A MUST BUY!!!!!

[IntelligentAj]

I haven't played the game but some of my friends who have say that most of the issues are easy to look past. It seems to me that people are simply point out every single flaw in the game instead of focusing what it delivers on in spades which is the gameplay experience

[MK_Red]

It's funny how everyone talks about combat and driving problems in ME without even realising that it's a classic RPG with dialogue trees which games haven't had since days of classics like Fallout.

[i Shank u]

honestly, the combat is great IMO. its an RPG with pretty good sniping for f*cks sake, why do people expect the combat to be as fluid as non-RPG games?. and it maybe its just me, but driving the mako off a mountain and having it flip out everywhere is alot more excitement then exploring in other rpg's. i dont get it man, the game is freaking sweeet and has great replay value

[MK_Red]

Agreed. Seriously, it's an RPG not a tactical shooter like GRAW. And agreed on driving. Seriously, were people expecting MotorStorm physics and gameplay in driving parts. For a RPG, that is beyond great.

[i Shank u]

i had been looking foward to this game since it was announced back in 05. after reading some negative criticism from "game journalists" i was a bit skeptical about getting the game, but now being on my 2nd play-through i can say that all this negative criticism on the game is just people looking for something to b!tch about. the battle system is awesome, story is awesome, basically if you like RPG's you will dig this game. calling it mass defect is retarded

[DeckUKold]

i've been sayin this forever the gameplay was flawed to the millionth degree it was horrid i'm not even going to go near a rental for this game

[GITPWNED]

Another fanboy article. Pass.

[Rice]

At least he gave a long and detailed explanation rather than a short one.

[Surviver]

K so, i think that he should'nt have reviewed the game///Stupid number 1, he didnt even finish it, stupid number 2, he is in a bad mindset because he is stuck. Number 3 stupid, it sounds like he hasn't leveled, his team and that he has poor weapons, 14 shots?

That was poor and biased. And kotar wasn't graphically up to par? WTF, not in 2007 maybe.

W/e the game was good and im glad i bouht it, especially since it was made in my city.

[SuperSaiyan4]

Its definently not as awesome as KOTOR 1 but I did play this game 3 times and am on my 4th play through.

KOTOR had lots more planets to go to and do stuff like side missions, lots more weapons, armour etc and was far more compelling one of the best RPG's ever but graphically wasnt that amazing.

It seems graphics are the main focal point with Mass Effect but even after the delays the problems in the games fps, screen tearing were not resolved.

Also this game only used up around 6gb of the disc, I really dont mind developers using 2 discs if the game can be made to last as long as KOTOR.

[The Milkman]

Once you do that you can make a good game feel bad once you play it. Yea you can be hyped about a game but at the same time try to be more realistic. If you dont you will majority of the time dissapoint yourself. In my books to much of anything is not always a good thing. Because too much hype can have things back fire on both the developer and the consumer.

But Mass Effect was a very fun game to me. But if you are a gamer that doesnt like much dialog, it may cause some problems for you. But even then it is still fun because you can experiment at the same time by being able to choose what you want to say. I been waiting for a game like this to release on a next generation console for awhile now. So I was more than happy to give this game a play.

[sak500]

If you add all the exclusive Ps3 games on 50gb bluray discs out yet they will still not be able to match the quality, depth and vastness of this game. Although i played it only for a little while till now (hooked to cod4) but i can see it becoming an epic like ELITE (80s space trading game) or Blade Runner / Star wars (movies) etc.

I'm a hardcore shooter and i can't stay away from fast pace action shooting but this game is like watching a movie and controlling the outcome with your decisions.