Life and Leisure. Tech and Toys.

After playing this game the entire Thanksgiving break I have come to the conclusion that this game rocks. Actually, I knew the game rocked just 10mins into the game. Once in a while there will be a game that raises the bar for RPGs and this time it is definitely Mass Effect. Even though I still read endless reviews bashing the fighting system I still think they did a darn good job in creating a fun action RPG. Granted the game was a little shorter than I had expected, it definitely did not disappoint.

I have to admit even though the side missions were not very appetizing because of their disconnect from the main story I still believe that they were done remarkably well. The side missions maintain full voice acting and allow you to venture to new worlds. Another thing that surprised me was how BioWare reconnected and followed up on the side missions. Anytime you would return to your home base (the Citadel) you would hear a news report about the missions while riding the elevator. This subtle audio clip really filled a void and completed the immersion of the universe.

To center our attention on the battle system I have to point out that the inability to give individual way point directions to my teammates was a little disappointing. In the end I just had my guys follow me around. There were only a couple battles where I would have liked my teammates to spread out and surround an enemy. I found giving orders to my teammates via the RB button to be straight forward and didn’t think it took away from the action at all. It was probably the first thing I did when I entered a battle. For small battles I’d only have to do a single round of orders.

So what makes Mass Effect a hot contender for Game of the Year? Again, I’ll point out the story and the immersion of the universe are big factors. There hasn’t been a game on the market to do this as well as Mass Effect. The creation of a believable galaxy matches that of Star Wars and Star Trek, with racial history and political agendas. The ability to make story changing decisions is amazing. For instance theres a part of the game where you’ll have to choose which of your team members will live or die. Yes, you’ll feel terrible about it but in the end it was your decision. Mass Effect opens doors with it’s hybrid battle system but it is still an RPG at heart with leveling up new spells and equipping new gear. The battles are fluidly integrated into the game and you’ll never stop and wonder what you were doing before you ran into that random battle.

The physics engine of the game is also pretty impressive. During the game you will probably unlock the Biotic spells Lift and Singularity. Lift simply starts making the enemy unit start floating. This is very useful to take one of the enemies out of the battle and in the open for an easy kill. Singularity creates a gravity ball of sorts and pulls enemies towards it which makes for an easy grenade kill. While these spells add for some cool battle techniques their physics are undeniably amazing. The enemies will float and rag doll with life like physics. I also have to mention the Mako, the all terrain vehicle that you’ll fall in love with from the first time you’re at the wheel. The vehicle bounces and jumps with some awesome physics as well.

Lastly, Mass Effect flaunts some of the best next gen graphics on the Xbox 360. Not only does this game raise the bar for RPGs but for next gen games of all genres. While its true you will notice some choppiness and loading during play, I’d probably contribute that to the fact that Microsoft has a clause that prevents developers from assuming the user owns a hard drive. At the same time, you could argue BioWare wasn’t doing their job efficiently but the game really looks great with an inspiring amount of attention to detail.

Thank you BioWare for making a great game and ending this great Xbox 360 year with a five star title.

thaichaiguy rating: 9.8
IGN rating: 9.4