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The Mass Effect trilogy is one of the greatest achievements in gaming history

Fools idol

Banned
Mass effect 1 had flashes of the old bioware quality but midway through it falls apart and ME2 and ME3 were terrible. Not sure what everyone sees in it to be honest but each to their own.
 

Red5

Member
What I loved most about it is the attempt to make a somewhat believable hard sci fi setting, with pseudo-scientific explanations in the codex. I was really hoping it could be the Star Trek of gaming, expand on the lore, make new characters, don't make the whole universe centered around one man, I wish we could get a sci fi noir detective game in the ME universe for example, no galaxy threatening wars, just a personal story that delves you into this universe.
 

gow3isben

Member
I have no doubt that Mass Effect 1 will forever be my favorite game of all time until I depart this world. Theres no chance something like it will ever be made again. Casey Hudson changed my life.

I get shivers just thinking about the trilogy. I forced myself to only replay it once per 2 years so it doesnt lose it's effect from too much replay. Gaming has never been the same after I finished the 3rd game. Nothing ever came close to this trilogy.

Bingo and ditto
 
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Grildon Tundy

Gold Member
I played the trilogy upon release and then once more with the remastered trilogy this winter. I love them. No other game has ever gotten me as invested in its universe as this one did.

I've always struggled getting into fantasy RPGs. But something about Mass Effect's sci-fi/fantasy made it feel like it wasn't a waste of my time. There's juuuust enough credibility to the premise that it got my imagination running wild.
 
The ambience (for the lack of a better word) of Mass Effect 1 is simply amazing.
Yeah...tbh if you erased my memory and showed me mass effect e3 2005 demonstration for the first time, and then showed me say...starfield. I'd pick mass effect. Conceptually thats what a space rpg is supposed to be.

I actually was hyped af and played both me1 and 2 and beat them. But with all the negative press for me3..and the gifs that made it look terrible, I skipped it.

Should I give it a go one day?
 
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Sgt.Asher

Member
I liked the first one the best, the second one improved the shooting but removed all the rpg goodness (story was pointless too). The third game was fucking awful.
 
The first one was amazing. The problem was that Bioware created an enemy that should've never been defeated given the lore, and they didn't know what to do with the Reapers in the end.

Two was the series' lowpoint.
 

Gamer79

Predicts the worst decade for Sony starting 2022
Played through them again since the original run on the 360. Best scifi RPG series period.
 
I think the teleporting shotgun class in mass effect 2 is probably the most entertaining action game combat I've ever had. Teleporting right up in someone's grill and blasting them in the face was amazing. I'm surprised it hasn't been done since. Shoot, I may go replay mass effect 2.
 

EDMIX

Member
The lolz..no it wasn't.

First game was meh, but I liked the idea of what they tried.
Second game is better in terms of execution
3rd game isn't that great.
I like Andromeda better then the first and 3rd game....

1. Mass Effect 2
2. Mass Effect 4 aka Andromeda
3. Mass Effect 1
4. Mass Effect 3

I don't hate the series, but I think better stories can be told, better gameplay can be found.... I'm more hype for Starfield then I was for all of the above lol, but maybe that is more of a "to each their own" type of thing.
 

Sub_Level

wants to fuck an Asian grill.
Yep. Its genuinely great stuff. I have replayed the whole trilogy on Insanity 3 times and had an absolute blast.
 

Madflavor

Member
Wasted potential. ME3 wasn’t nearly as good as it should’ve been, and EA/BioWare slept on the best Sci-Fi universe since Star Wars. One of the worst endings I’d ever seen. I went from a die hard fan to walking away from the series. I haven’t touched the series since.

I knew something seriously went wrong with ME’s writing when Commander Shepard of all people, needed to be convinced that fighting on Earth was pointless and he needed to go unite the Galaxy.
 

Sgt.Asher

Member
I played about 3 walkthroughs of ME1 & ME2 but stopped to a grinding halt at ME3 after a couple of hours.

It just felt wrong. Like a whole new team stepped in and messed it up.
I tried a second playthrough once, stopped once edi became a sex robot. Then I knew they replaced grunt and wrex with a roided out space marine.

Edit: Thanks for the gold, don't have to deal with the drop down adds!
 
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The lolz..no it wasn't.

First game was meh, but I liked the idea of what they tried.
Second game is better in terms of execution
3rd game isn't that great.
I like Andromeda better then the first and 3rd game....

1. Mass Effect 2
2. Mass Effect 4 aka Andromeda
3. Mass Effect 1
4. Mass Effect 3

I don't hate the series, but I think better stories can be told, better gameplay can be found.... I'm more hype for Starfield then I was for all of the above lol, but maybe that is more of a "to each their own" type of thing.
I think conceptually that original mass effect demo is what I would want starfield to be lol

If you gonna go futuristic space, go futuristic SPACE. Not human on human bs.
 

Damigos

Member
Agree for the most part. One of the best gaming series. Especially enjoyed that your choices carry on in the next games.
Still didnt particularly like the combat in all of thrm
 

The Cockatrice

Gold Member
You're not wrong. We have yet to receive a sci-fi opera like Mass Effect. Will Starfield surpass it? I hope so. We need more sci-fi operas.
 

Fbh

Member
Absolutely agree.
It's a shame no one has even attempted to do something similar since (at least in the AAA space) and with dev cycles getting longer and longer they probably never will.

I also think it deserves praise for creating an original and engaging Sci Fi universe instead of relying on adapting existing IP like Star Wars.
You could argue some of the concepts and ideas are a bit derivate (though what isn't these days) but I still loved interacting with all the different races, learning about their histories, their cultures, how they interact with each other, etc.
From the top of my head I could give you basic descriptions of the Korgan, and Salarians and Geth, and Turians, the Asari, etc. I could tell you about the history of the Krogans and Salarians resulting in the release of the genophage or how Humans and Turnias still have some bad blood between each other going all the way back to the first contact wars.
Meanwhile I've seen 9 Star Wars movies and like 4 Tv shows and I don't think I can really name any alien race.
 

MidGenRefresh

*Refreshes biennially
Yeah...tbh if you erased my memory and showed me mass effect e3 2005 demonstration for the first time, and then showed me say...starfield. I'd pick mass effect. Conceptually thats what a space rpg is supposed to be.

I actually was hyped af and played both me1 and 2 and beat them. But with all the negative press for me3..and the gifs that made it look terrible, I skipped it.

Should I give it a go one day?

Give it a try, you will know if you like it after an hour or 2. I didn't. I rather replay Mass Effect 1 for the nth time than subject myself to Mass Effect 3.
 

Hugare

Member
I spent MONTHS obsessed with the Indocrination Theory

It was so good. Why you didnt play along, Bioware? You stupid

Probably my favorite series of games of all time

I'm one of those weirdos who dont like ME 2 very much. Great characters and scenarios, but its 100% filler. Story just goes nowhere.

ME 1 is GOAT. And ME 3 is "Fan Service: The Game", but I love it for it.
 

Gorgon

Member
Some will laugh, others will disagree, some will call me hyperbolic, and others still will agree.

In spite of EA's best efforts to ruin the trilogy, it rose to the occasion and delivered what is one of the most epic, engrossing, and awesome gaming experiences ever.

The fact that Bioware managed to write a series of three games in which the impact of the decisions you made in the first game carry weight throughout the entire trilogy is nothing short of astonishing. Does it stumble at various points? You bet. Who could forget the original ending debacle? The countless DLCs locked behind EA points or whatever the fuck they were called?

Still, even considering everything, Bioware managed to take us to the end of that sprawling journey and what a wild ride it was. I don't think we're ever seeing something like this again considering how insanely long game development cycles have gotten. A trilogy of that scale and scope today would take something like 12 years from the release of the first game to the release of the final game. It's unlikely anyone attempts this in the current climate. Even Barlog thought a GOW trilogy would be too long and condensed everything in the second game to make sure they would be done with a duology.

An engaging story that doesn't suck? Yep. Well-written, tridimensional and interesting characters? We got you covered. A good combat system (except for the first game) that even requires skill and knowledge on higher difficulties? Mass Effect has that on top of solid overall gameplay that ties very well to the lore. Let's also not forget the fantastic musical score.

For anyone who hasn't tried the games, I highly encourage you to give them a go. They still hold up well to this day both narratively and from a gameplay standpoint. My brother just completed the third game after a 10-year hiatus from the series (he beat the first one but never tried the others) and he needs some time off from gaming to let the experience sink in.

My 50 cents:

1) "The fact that Bioware managed to write a series of three games in which the impact of the decisions you made in the first game carry weight throughout the entire trilogy is nothing short of astonishing."

I don't remember if Baldur's Gate carried saves over to BG2 (I played them back in the day on PC and I didn't like BG2, so it's lost for me in the fog of memory), but it certainly has been done since then e.g. the save and choices in The Witcher 2 carry over to The Witcher 3 and have an impact on the latter. But at the time it certainly felt fresh.



2) "I don't think we're ever seeing something like this again considering how insanely long game development cycles have gotten. A trilogy of that scale and scope today would take something like 12 years from the release of the first game to the release of the final game. It's unlikely anyone attempts this in the current climate"

I don't see that. There has been trilogies of top notch RPGs with the same or more depth than ME since then and more are in the works. On the top of my head, The Witcher trilogy is such a case and we are getting a new trilogy this gen. Baldur's Gate 3 will probably go the same route. I also think that Pillars of Eternity and the Divinity series did the same with saves etc. All of them have massive lore and depth, for what it's worth. Also, the second and third instalments tend to be developed faster because many of the designa nd technical hurdles are usually overcome after the first title.



3) Agreed on the great characters. This is something that sometimes gets short-shrifted in RPGs, Bethesda games being some of the most obvious cases in popular titles. And the soundtrack was amazingly good and atmospheric in ME. Still one of the best.


With all of the above said, I do have some issues with it. For starters, I think some of the reasons for ME's popularity and attatchment that people have towards it come from:

a) It's still one of the few AAA RPG game series set in space. Outside of Starfield (which isn't even out yet) I can't really think of anything else in the same ball-park.

b) Graphics and overall game presentation was great at the time. It nailed the "cinematic" part, mostly obvious during dialogue sections.



But there were also some rotten parts:

a) The wheel dialogue system was a presentation gimmick that brough nothing in terms of gameplay. Also, several times you choose an option that you think will make the character say A only to see him/her say something completely off. For actual character roleplaying it was shite.

b) Some of the gameplay elements were complete bullshit. The exploration craft that hovers and jumps around in ME2 was such a case. You go around platforming and pressing a key while trying to stay in the same position over a site marker. I felt like I was playing Super Mario: spce edition. Total bulshit.

c) The whole buy fuel thing while you fly around in ME2. Bad design with no purpose watsoever.

d) The bullshit planet scanning. Just bad design again.

e) Run-of-the-mill lore and universe. Well done and interesting enough as far as a videogame goes but as actual sci-fi it's as bare and off-the-shelves as it gets. But together with good presentation and good characters, as well as good atmosphere, it did a pretty OK job. I just wish people would beyond the derivative aci-fi shif-shaf and deliver something more interesting than this. Starfield won't be that game either :messenger_tears_of_joy:

f) Other shit I don't remember.



Bottom line: Solid trilogy that I very much doubt Bioware will ever match again.
 

01011001

Banned
Jingle All The Way Lol GIF by filmeditor
 

Shut0wen

Member
Id say dragon age had more influence on the rpg genre then mass effect ever did, i guess mass effect 2 and 3 pushed the whole rpg elements in shitty games
 

EDMIX

Member
So your opinions can be safely discarded

nahhhh lol

The Andromeda seems to do more gameplay wise then the first game, to the point where the mean core concept of the game fits better in Andromeda then Mass Effect 1, it literally feels like they game they were trying to make the first time.

I don't give a shit for either of the stories mind you, I simply like the travel, exploration and concept far better in Andromeda, then in the first game. Mass Effect 1 feels like half an idea.

So for me, even as someone that played it at release...there is no rose tinted glasses or nostalgia regarding that first game. My view when I first played it, remains the same today.
 
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Spaceman292

Banned
nahhhh lol

The Andromeda seems to do more gameplay wise then the first game, to the point where the mean core concept of the game fits better in Andromeda then Mass Effect 1, it literally feels like they game they were trying to make the first time.

I don't give a shit for either of the stories mind you, I simply like the travel, exploration and concept far better in Andromeda, then in the first game. Mass Effect 1 feels like half an idea.

So for me, even as someone that played it at release...there is no rose tinted glasses or nostalgia regarding that first game. My view when I first played it, remains the same today.
If you're not even paying attention to the story why did you even play it? It's a narrative based RPG.
 

Mozzarella

Member
Great trilogy, to me this is maybe the best trilogy in gaming, but it can be surpassed in the future because the third game while good isn't on par with the rest.
Sure you can probably find a more consistent trilogy but it would probably have less highs or works worse as a trilogy so this one currently takes the crown.
 

EDMIX

Member
If you're not even paying attention to the story why did you even play it? It's a narrative based RPG.

Cause I like the concept and "narrative" more then the actual story itself.

Keep in mind, holy shit...I literally say IN THE POST you are replying to

"I simply like the travel, exploration and concept" lol

Many reasons exist to play a game, I generally hate the story in Mass Effect and like the general concept, setting and main idea much more then the actual story. I mean, imagine you saying this to a person with MGSV as their profile lol

I love a great story in a game, I still also play games for their core mechanics and other reasons. So not every game I'm playing for the story, not every game I'm playing for the mechanics. Its dynamic, subjective and depends on the game. I know others have a hard on for that story or love the characters etc, not all of us actually feel that way about this IP, that actually played this whole IP.

Its an odd to even question why someone is playing it with this bizarre assumption only 1 reason exist to play Mass Effect. Shit, give the team that much credit bud = )
 
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