[Official] Mass Effect 2

[MightyJordan]

When you see a new game go on sale so quick like that it just proves that sales have been great already. There has to be some sorta deal in place that says if you sell X ammount then the price gets lowered. Or maybe it's Amazon just looking to get people to spend and maybe buy a 2nd item to make up for the $10 hit on the game.

It probably is that, as I usually think the opposite, that the put the game on sale when they've hardly sold any copies of it. For example, I got Section 8 last week for just ?6, and that only came out in September. But yeah, Mass Effect has sold millions of copies already. For some bizarre reason, even Aliens vs. Predator is selling well here in the UK; it was #1 on the games chart last week, and it's #2 this week, only losing out to Battlefield Bad Company 2. Hell, even Modern Warfare 2 is still in the charts at #3.

[metal_dragen Veteran]

I think it has more to do with the genre. BioWare/EA know that the ME fans and people who like RPGs have already bought it - they're the ones most likely to buy it within a month of launch. But, RPGs are not as "cross-compatible" with other genres. A good FPS will sell to RPGers, Action-Adventure types, and just about any other person whose primary genre is not FPS. RPGs are different, so they have to provide some inducement for those people to cross that line and buy an RPG.

Case in point = Modern Warfare 2 is still selling for $60 and it's been out nearly twice as long as ME2 and sold way more.

[Yusuf M. Veteran]

Looks like the "Firewalker" (Hammerhead vehicle) DLC is available now: http://www.vg247.com/2010/03/23/mass-effect-2-firewalker-dlc-now-live/

Also, an appearance pack is available for Thane and Garrus: http://www.vg247.com/2010/03/19/mass-effect-2-apperance-pack-announced-as-dlc-for-march-23/

Not to mention the Kasumi DLC (new character/missions) for April 6: http://www.vg247.com/2010/03/16/bioware-throws-kasumi-into-the-mass-effect-2-mix/

[deletedxyz]

$2 for changing three outfits?! Ridiculous.

[trag3dy]

I think that $2 for the outfits isn't that bad, considering all the other free dlc they're giving us. Now if you like the outfits or not is an entirely different matter..

[Argi]

I think that $2 for the outfits isn't that bad, considering all the other free dlc they're giving us. Now if you like the outfits or not is an entirely different matter..

Nothing ever justifies charging money for textures/models. The upcoming paid content DLC though, if it's not too expensive, sure.

[LingeringSoul]

Wait a minute, the appearance pack isn't free? Oh dear, it's the Oblivion Horse Armour all over again...

(And this is coming from a certified ME2 fanboy)

[deletedxyz]

Am I the only one who thinks that Bioware modeled the Quarian vs. Geth conflict on Israel vs. Palestine land war? One doesn't want to concede the "homeworld" while the other simply wants to live in a place it fought and won over. I am quite convinced because of the the Persian/Arab artwork and clothing (veil, hijab, etc.) while the cultural names for Tali calling her relatives "aunty" and "uncle". Tali is also a Hebrew name.

[LingeringSoul]

Bioware released a trailer for the new DLC, Kasumi's Stolen Memory: http://www.vg247.com/2010/04/02/me2-kasumi-dlc-gets-trailer-treatment/

Not so sure about this. $7 USD (560 MS points, if you must) for a new character and a new mission (unless I'm mistaken and the DLC has more content than that) is a little sketchy. Besides, I bitched up a storm about the MW2 Stimulus Package, so I would be a pretty big hypocrite if I turned around and bought this ;).

I'll see how the reviews go. Probably not a day one purchase, despite my love for Mass Effect 2.

[Hani]

I've finished the game yesterday, ****ing awesome 10/10! Looking forward for ME3 (hopefully the last). However I think the game is a little bit flawed:

1)

What did we actually accomplish in ME2? We stopped the making of a single Reaper to a fleet of thousands. There isn't much of a story here. It was only about building your team and upgrading your ship. I can only wish they had been more ambitious with the plot. I think the story of the first was far more mature.

2) Where's Mako? I liked being the only living thing on a distant planet exploring it. Probing in this game is a bore fest, nevertheless I probed almost all the planets.

3) The game is easy on Normal difficulty. The final battle was far from challenging.

ME2 felt like a middle child, however I'm sure that ME3 will be much better.

[Midge]

I've finished the game yesterday, ****ing awesome 10/10! Looking forward for ME3 (hopefully the last). However I think the game is a little bit flawed:

1)

What did we actually accomplish in ME2? We stopped the making of a single Reaper to a fleet of thousands. There isn't much of a story here. It was only about building your team and upgrading your ship. I can only wish they had been more ambitious with the plot. I think the story of the first was far more mature.

2) Where's Mako? I liked being the only living thing on a distant planet exploring it. Probing in this game is a bore fest, nevertheless I probed almost all the planets.

3) The game is easy on Normal difficulty. The final battle was far from challenging.

ME2 felt like a middle child, however I'm sure that ME3 will be much better.

jump on the cerberus network, theres loads of free dlc, firewalker includes 5 missions and a tank thingy, its not the mako but its a tank thingy

[Hani]

jump on the cerberus network, theres loads of free dlc, firewalker includes 5 missions and a tank thingy, its not the mako but its a tank thingy

I usually don't enjoy playing DLC. Thanks anyways!

[Yusuf M. Veteran]

So, has anyone tried the Kasumi DLC yet?

[deletedxyz]

So, has anyone tried the Kasumi DLC yet?

I did. It's overpriced. For slightly over an hour of gameplay, $7 is too much considering I paid $30 for Mass Effect 2 ($1 per hour I played one playthrough).

[Slammers]

Finished ME2 a few days ago and have to say i was quite disapointed. Took me forty hours, but i 100% every system, finished every quest and upgraded everything i possibly could.

It just seemed so less epic then the first. Like all that really happend was I did some side quests (all the team building/getting their trust etc. quests seemed like side quests). It's been a few years since I played ME1, but it seemed like the citedal in the first one was bigger than the whole of the second one (exageration I know). To me it seemed much less of an RPG and much more of an action game. There was almost no exploration etc.

Also i thought the whole planet scanning thing was pathetic and a waste of time. I finished the game with over 200,000 of each resource apart from element zero thinking that all my harvesting wouldn't be for nothing. But it was....

Also why is it so incredibly easy?!?! I played on the difficulty higher than normal and almost never died, never got stuck, never even found a fight tough. I could have finished the whole game without using any powers/abilities.

Even after all these negative points i still really enjoyed it. Goes to show how artfully bioware has crafted their gfx and storytelling techniques. I thought all the visuals were magnificant, voice acting was top notch and gameplay was nicely refined from the first. The story probably will prove to be great int he long run but after the first this one seemed abit brief and kinda worthless.

Anyone agree? I can't be bothered reading back through the thread just thought i'd drop my two cence. It just seems that after Dragon Age this is abit of a disapointment. I mean if they could have dragon age gameplay and story with this presentation and universe well i think my head would explode.

Whew thats a big rant for me

[deletedxyz]

@stunts

You didn't enjoy it as much because you didn't play it right after the first game. Mass Effect 2 is much more polished and the loyalty quests gave more character to a set of new crew members. Play the two games back to back. The only reason you don't feel completely amazed by the end of the game is it's because the game is the middle child of a trilogy. The ending did not match the epic introduction to ME2.

I'm playing ME2 for the third time on Insanity with a previous character and there are blatant flaws in the game. The friendly AI control is horrific and is not intelligent enough to take proper cover during an intense firefight. I have high expectations for ME3 (which is rumored for a 2011 release) and hope to have an amazing in depth 30+ hour game with all loose ends answered.

[Yusuf M. Veteran]

I did. It's overpriced. For slightly over an hour of gameplay, $7 is too much considering I paid $30 for Mass Effect 2 ($1 per hour I played one playthrough).

That's what I was afraid of. Hopefully they'll lower the price.

[...]

I didn't think Mass Effect 2 was as good as Mass Effect 1. And I too think it felt more like an action game than a RPG. Of course, I'm not saying that Mass Effect is a bad game. In fact, it's great. The bad part, for me, is that it fell short in some parts and did better [than ME1] in others. For instance, you can't view the stats of your weapons or armor. In ME1, you could view the stats (e.g. Weapon 1 does 99 damage and weapon 2 does 102 damage). ME2 would've been perfect for me if they kept the RPG element that made ME1 great.

With that said, I'm definitely looking forward to Mass Effect 3 which should be released on PC/X360.

[Xerxes]

@stunts

You didn't enjoy it as much because you didn't play it right after the first game. Mass Effect 2 is much more polished and the loyalty quests gave more character to a set of new crew members. Play the two games back to back. The only reason you don't feel completely amazed by the end of the game is it's because the game is the middle child of a trilogy. The ending did not match the epic introduction to ME2.

I'm playing ME2 for the third time on Insanity with a previous character and there are blatant flaws in the game. The friendly AI control is horrific and is not intelligent enough to take proper cover during an intense firefight. I have high expectations for ME3 (which is rumored for a 2011 release) and hope to have an amazing in depth 30+ hour game with all loose ends answered.

As much as I want ME3 now, I hope that rumor turns out false! I don't want a rushed ME3 because everyone is too impatient to wait. Personally I'd rather they took their time, learnt from their mistakes in ME2 and make sure it's the best possible experience possible. However, that is just me.

[Hedon]

Wow...and I found Mass Effect 2 probably twice as good as Mass Effect 1. I just love everything they did with ME2, the polish, the gameplay, the improved UI, the side quests, the story, etc. Just overall a much better game.

[Massiveterra]

As much as I want ME3 now, I hope that rumor turns out false! I don't want a rushed ME3 because everyone is too impatient to wait. Personally I'd rather they took their time, learnt from their mistakes in ME2 and make sure it's the best possible experience possible. However, that is just me.

Considering Mass Effect 2 was finished by end of summer 2009, that still gives Mass Effect 3 a 2 year development

[sanctified Veteran]

How do you expect a bridge game to be epic? This game was all about character development and it excels at that.

[Hani]

True. But should we expect ME3 to lack team building? Also, wouldn't that increase dependability on one's ME2 savegame?

[sanctified Veteran]

True. But should we expect ME3 to lack team building? Also, wouldn't that increase dependability on one's ME2 savegame?

Im sure something will be implemented if you dont have a save game, like ME2. I dont think anyone will play the third one first since these games have such complex plot so the vast majority will know the story so far.

I predict that yes, it will lack team building, but it will be rich on team development (different thing) and plot. YOU HAVE THANES FOR GOD'S SAKE! YOU DONT NEED ANYONE ELSE :p

[Hani]

Would you prefer if ME3 is the last?

I do. I'm a big fan of this game, I don't want them to over do it.

[lawtai]

I finished up Mass Effect 1 a few weeks back and moved on to Mass Effect 2. So far it's been a great game. Definitely interesting to see how they bring about Mass Effect 3.