XCVG
ModRetro Legend
I love writing reviews. Most of them are critical and inaccurate, but I love writing them anyway. Since the review site is all but forgotten about, I'm starting a thread. I plan to post two reviews a week- one new and one repost. Eventually, I'll run out of old reviews and I'll probably scale back rather than write two reviews a week.
Review Index
1. Mass Effect (PC)
2. Ms. Pac-Man TV Game (repost)
3. Microsoft XBOX
4. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (PC)
5. Medal of Honor (Singleplayer)
6. Portal 2 (PC)
XCVG's rating scale explained (used on BFBC2 and MoH reviews)
Immersion: Mostly to do with the storyline, but also includes the overall experience. Does it pull me in?
Gameplay: Is it fun? Difficulty just right? Pretty much self-explanatory and impossible to explain.
Quality: How good is it, technically? Graphics, sound, and overall quality are included.
All are out of ten, and overall score is calculated mathematically.
Mass Effect (PC)
As you all know, Mass Effect is one of samjc3's favorite games (the other being Mass Effect 2). I also like it.
If you don't live under a rock (come on, admit it, you probably do), you probably have at least heard of Mass Effect. It's an RPG/shooter set in the relatively near future, availible for PC and XBOX 360. You play as Commander Shepard, working with both the military of Earth and the alien Council. You have to chase down a bad guy bent on destroying the galaxy. There's much more to it, of course, but I don't want to give away the whole story. The titular Mass Effect is basically the warp drive or Stargate of the game; it's what makes everything possible, this time in the form of "Element Zero".
Mass Effect is an RPG, and you choose a class, level up, and deal with items. There are three pure and three hybrid classes. There is of course normal combat with guns, but there is also biotics (think the Force with a technobabble explaination) and tech powers. The problem is the powers only work as a companion to shooting stuff, not as a way to defeat enemies on their own. You always have two squadmates with you, though, so they can do the shooting. Combat mainly consists of shooting from behind cover. Right now I'd like to point out that the AI kind of sucks but is at the same time pretty hard. Usually you are up against overwhelming force, and your squadmates do little more than get themselves killed. The enemy combines two tactics of shooting from a distance and rushing you, usually the latter. Overall, combat is decent but not great.
I kind of got away from the RPG elements of the game. You can't talk to everyone, but it's pretty Dang close. All the dialog is voice, not text, and you can ask about stuff and take a paragon, neutral, or renegade stance. Paragon and renegade is basically the morality system. There are two meters, not one, and completing assignments different ways or saying different things earns you either paragon or renegade. Oddly, some things I would expect to give renegade gave paragon and vice versa. Maybe I just have a twisted moral compass, though. There's nothing special about leveling up; you get a certain amount of points with each level and apply them to certain skills. This applies to your squadmates, too, though only the ones you're with. The ones that aren't with you get points, too, but you have to have them with you to apply them.
One thing the game really fails at is inventory. There are lots of weapons, armor, and upgrades to choose from, but they all fall into a few basic categories. It seems like a lot but really there isn't much variety to be had. Inventory management is a pain in the ass. You can sell items or convert them to Omni-Gel, which I found kind of odd. Your inventory fills up fast, and it's a pain to clear out. A lot of people hate the Mako driving parts of the game. I kind of liked them, but I do see the flaws. The physics need work, and you can only drive within a very limited area. Again, the lack of variety rears its ugly head. There is virtually zero variety in the landscapes, and no cool low-grav effects either. The planets are pretty much all empty except for a few outposts, although maybe it's just that you can't land on the densely populated ones.
Mass Effect is a very immersive game. As I said before, you can talk to a lot of people. There are quite a few side-assignments, though not a huge amount. The graphics aren't great, even for a game from 2007. Don't get me wrong, they aren't bad either, just not spectacular. The music works well with the overall theme and tone. There are plenty of cutscenes and the game feels... cinematic I guess would be the right term. However, although the main story is well done, the side assignments lack the polish and cinematic feel. The main story is also quite short, but you'll inevitably get caught up in the side assignements, which extends the game significantly.
As usual, I have several minor complaints. First off, you are ridiculously short on credits in the beginning, and have a ridiculous surplus of them at the end. I don't think this is specific to Mass Effect, though; most RPGs are like this. I've already stated this but I'll say it again- LACK OF VARIETY. Seriously, you need some different kinds of guns, a nice assortment of props, and more than two types of building. I may be the only one not excited about the romance subplot, but it's both too easy to develop a relationship, accidentally or otherwise, and too easy to end it. Just being a good, caring, paragon commander will result in a relationship. I'd like to note that all these complaints are relatively minor, all things considered.
Overall, Mass Effect is an immersive, fun RPG. It's a bit rough around the edges, but overall it's pretty good. It's not that old, but it can be had for the bargain price of $20 over Steam.
The Good:
Immersive, good value for $20, has a good cinematic feel, combat is pretty good
The Bad:
Lack of variety, side assignments lack polish, inventory management is a pain
The Meh:
Two types of building, Normandy has a horribly impractical interior
SCORE: 8/10
Review Index
1. Mass Effect (PC)
2. Ms. Pac-Man TV Game (repost)
3. Microsoft XBOX
4. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (PC)
5. Medal of Honor (Singleplayer)
6. Portal 2 (PC)
XCVG's rating scale explained (used on BFBC2 and MoH reviews)
Immersion: Mostly to do with the storyline, but also includes the overall experience. Does it pull me in?
Gameplay: Is it fun? Difficulty just right? Pretty much self-explanatory and impossible to explain.
Quality: How good is it, technically? Graphics, sound, and overall quality are included.
All are out of ten, and overall score is calculated mathematically.
Mass Effect (PC)
As you all know, Mass Effect is one of samjc3's favorite games (the other being Mass Effect 2). I also like it.
If you don't live under a rock (come on, admit it, you probably do), you probably have at least heard of Mass Effect. It's an RPG/shooter set in the relatively near future, availible for PC and XBOX 360. You play as Commander Shepard, working with both the military of Earth and the alien Council. You have to chase down a bad guy bent on destroying the galaxy. There's much more to it, of course, but I don't want to give away the whole story. The titular Mass Effect is basically the warp drive or Stargate of the game; it's what makes everything possible, this time in the form of "Element Zero".
Mass Effect is an RPG, and you choose a class, level up, and deal with items. There are three pure and three hybrid classes. There is of course normal combat with guns, but there is also biotics (think the Force with a technobabble explaination) and tech powers. The problem is the powers only work as a companion to shooting stuff, not as a way to defeat enemies on their own. You always have two squadmates with you, though, so they can do the shooting. Combat mainly consists of shooting from behind cover. Right now I'd like to point out that the AI kind of sucks but is at the same time pretty hard. Usually you are up against overwhelming force, and your squadmates do little more than get themselves killed. The enemy combines two tactics of shooting from a distance and rushing you, usually the latter. Overall, combat is decent but not great.
I kind of got away from the RPG elements of the game. You can't talk to everyone, but it's pretty Dang close. All the dialog is voice, not text, and you can ask about stuff and take a paragon, neutral, or renegade stance. Paragon and renegade is basically the morality system. There are two meters, not one, and completing assignments different ways or saying different things earns you either paragon or renegade. Oddly, some things I would expect to give renegade gave paragon and vice versa. Maybe I just have a twisted moral compass, though. There's nothing special about leveling up; you get a certain amount of points with each level and apply them to certain skills. This applies to your squadmates, too, though only the ones you're with. The ones that aren't with you get points, too, but you have to have them with you to apply them.
One thing the game really fails at is inventory. There are lots of weapons, armor, and upgrades to choose from, but they all fall into a few basic categories. It seems like a lot but really there isn't much variety to be had. Inventory management is a pain in the ass. You can sell items or convert them to Omni-Gel, which I found kind of odd. Your inventory fills up fast, and it's a pain to clear out. A lot of people hate the Mako driving parts of the game. I kind of liked them, but I do see the flaws. The physics need work, and you can only drive within a very limited area. Again, the lack of variety rears its ugly head. There is virtually zero variety in the landscapes, and no cool low-grav effects either. The planets are pretty much all empty except for a few outposts, although maybe it's just that you can't land on the densely populated ones.
Mass Effect is a very immersive game. As I said before, you can talk to a lot of people. There are quite a few side-assignments, though not a huge amount. The graphics aren't great, even for a game from 2007. Don't get me wrong, they aren't bad either, just not spectacular. The music works well with the overall theme and tone. There are plenty of cutscenes and the game feels... cinematic I guess would be the right term. However, although the main story is well done, the side assignments lack the polish and cinematic feel. The main story is also quite short, but you'll inevitably get caught up in the side assignements, which extends the game significantly.
As usual, I have several minor complaints. First off, you are ridiculously short on credits in the beginning, and have a ridiculous surplus of them at the end. I don't think this is specific to Mass Effect, though; most RPGs are like this. I've already stated this but I'll say it again- LACK OF VARIETY. Seriously, you need some different kinds of guns, a nice assortment of props, and more than two types of building. I may be the only one not excited about the romance subplot, but it's both too easy to develop a relationship, accidentally or otherwise, and too easy to end it. Just being a good, caring, paragon commander will result in a relationship. I'd like to note that all these complaints are relatively minor, all things considered.
Overall, Mass Effect is an immersive, fun RPG. It's a bit rough around the edges, but overall it's pretty good. It's not that old, but it can be had for the bargain price of $20 over Steam.
The Good:
Immersive, good value for $20, has a good cinematic feel, combat is pretty good
The Bad:
Lack of variety, side assignments lack polish, inventory management is a pain
The Meh:
Two types of building, Normandy has a horribly impractical interior
SCORE: 8/10
