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March 29, 2024, 01:14:01 PM

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Mass Effect 2 [split topic]

Started by Second Burner, January 28, 2010, 04:44:41 PM

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HappyTree

LOL, before doing my final loyalty mission (Tali) I thought I'd speak to the crew and see if there's anything more they want to say. I've just had Mordin singing Gilbert & Sullivan to me. Brilliant :-D

I love how this story is written. When you're presented with one choice you make your decision, then afterwards that information gets twisted into a new slant on the same problem. It's really well worked out. Life is always changing the parameters of old information.

Ignatius_S

Quote from: Little Hoover on September 27, 2011, 01:09:24 AM
Yeah it's understandable why, and I know they're doing something different with this saga,  but it still seems a little excessive how much they've assumed people would be familiar with the first game....

One of the selling points – and arguably, a key one – for ME2 was that decisions from the first game will carry over. Going further, decisions that could be made in Mass Effect will, supposedly, have a major effect in the third one. With that kind approach, a familiarity really does help the audience.

I can see how annoying it would be for someone entering the series with the second game, but for me, the whole back story made the second one worth playing. In ME2, there were some nice tweaks, but there were some steps backwards (which have been touched upon earlier in this thread)

Quote from: Little Hoover on September 27, 2011, 01:09:24 AM
...I'm not saying all the renegade/paragon points need to be ditched, just that some moral decisions you make aren't black or white. (or blue or red, rather) The story impact can still carry on into the next game, but I think it cheapens it to say that one decision gives you paragon points, the other renegade points. It'd be more exciting if you didn't know whether the decision you'd made was good or bad and you had to wait for the next game to find out.

Oh, I totally understand that you didn't mean that system didn't need to be ditched, but was just putting forward probably the biggest reason why it is how it is. As these points carry over into a new game in, then it helps replayability. Arguably, this was more in evidence in the first one – unless you invested in charm/intimidate skills, it was incredibly difficult to access the renegade/paragon options.

The idea of not knowing if your actions were positive or not, is a very interesting one. How many gamers would approve of such delayed gratification, I wonder? However, if they did introduce such an aspect, then gamers would have to be very familiar with the previous game, which I think would acerbate the negative experience that you had jumping straight to ME2.

Looking more towards the overall system, one of the problems with it, is that it's a little messy what renegade and paragon actions represents – the first doesn't necessarily mean 'bad' and the latter 'good', but it's pretty much along those kind of lines. Sometimes decisions are more morally grey than the games would like to believe. In the second game, I felt the system got worse. Rather than read the dialogue option, you just selected top-right for Mr Nice, middle-right for Mr Sitting On A Fence and bottom-right for Mr Mean – particularly, when what was actually spoken could be rather different to what was written down.

Quote from: HappyTree on September 27, 2011, 01:23:44 AM
A couple of times I've noticed that I strayed from trying to be so sugary sweet and fancied a little joke or even neutral comment. And then at the end I get hit with 4 renegade. Sometimes I'm not sure if a comment at the bottom-left of the conversation wheel will give me additional info or be a negative trigger...

If it's bottom-left, I think it's always a negative/renegade dialogue branch - it's an incredibly dumbed-down system.

HappyTree

It's like that most of the time, yes, but in some "Investigate" paths the topics are just arranged around willy nilly.

Although I do like to try to be an angel 0:-) I would like there to be a less clear-cut system and for influence to be a neutral power. Then we can all choose the specific way one charms or intimidates without it being held against you in the big book in the sky. My only worry when playing this system is to have enough points to give me this option, hence in every RPG I play I always pour points into conversation skills as quickly as possible. One doesn't like to see some conversation possibilities greyed out!

Ignatius_S

Quote from: HappyTree on October 03, 2011, 07:06:20 PM
It's like that most of the time, yes, but in some "Investigate" paths the topics are just arranged around willy nilly....

In my experience, it was the same every time.

Quote from: HappyTree on October 03, 2011, 07:06:20 PM
...Although I do like to try to be an angel 0:-) I would like there to be a less clear-cut system and for influence to be a neutral power.....

It just ain't that type of game!

HappyTree

I just replayed the Tali tribunal story several times as I wanted to see what all the options did. At times the dialogue branches swapped around. It's only happened a few times but there were occasions when I only wanted some more information and got negged for it! Anyway, only 3 months until the next one. I just hope they don't mess around with it too much.

Ignatius_S

Quote from: HappyTree on October 03, 2011, 09:55:46 PM
I just replayed the Tali tribunal story several times as I wanted to see what all the options did. At times the dialogue branches swapped around. It's only happened a few times but there were occasions when I only wanted some more information and got negged for it! Anyway, only 3 months until the next one. I just hope they don't mess around with it too much.

I did something similar with a few conversations to experiment and each time, it was the same, so it's very interesting to hear about your experience!

Re: possible changes – at the moment, the hands-on previews have been combat focussed and there hasn't been any talk about the dialogue system. However, I'd be inclined to think there won't be drastic changes – because of the boasting that DA2 and Star Wars: The Old Republic would/will have a ME2 dialogue wheel system, I suspect that Bioware are pretty much happy with it.

HappyTree

After a marathon weekend I have finally finished the main campaign and all side missions on all planets, plus Shadow Broker DLC afterwards. Brilliant stuff. This is the kind of game I like, I got rewarded for my grinding hours of mining planets for upgrades by becoming an insanely powerful biotic.

Warp was by far the best weapon. Just blasts away at organics, mechs and shields and is self-targeting so you just aim vaguely in someone's direction and watch the fun as your blue ball of death zips round a corner. Sniper rifle was great too for taking out distant guards lying in wait. By the time I had assembled my loyal team basically nothing could touch us. Even the Thresher Maw was a pushover. Cool.

Played on easy difficulty and for my fun-seeking I don't see what a harder setting would have added. I don't need to spend 20 minutes hammering at someone's shields to get the idea. 5 will do. I mostly enjoyed sitting back, dominating enemies so they fought each other and listening to Kasumi laugh (ha-ha!) as she cloaked to take people out invisibly.

Minor gripe is that Legion came to the party way too late to be of much use. Hopefully he'll be in the next one and have a bit more of a sense of humour. Will they ever better HK-47? I'd be happy if they just blatantly ripped him off. Meatbag!

Just got Overlord and Arrival left. They say they're not as good as Shadow Broker. Oh well. I love the end of Shadow Broker. I had had a lesbiotic relationship with Liara in ME1 so it was nice to continue that, and her
Spoiler alert
becoming the Shadow Broker
[close]
was a surprise. So of course I
Spoiler alert
abused this power and read everyone's secret files
[close]
. Some real gems in there like Kasumi's
Spoiler alert
love poem about Jacob and a blatant display of double-dealing with Tali
[close]
. Kasumi was my favourite character, I hope she gets a full part in ME3. It was frustrating that she only got a few limited comments in conversations on the ship.



5 months to wait!