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Post by Cali on Jul 31, 2009 16:26:34 GMT 1
Some music to Jazz up the mood while reading:
In the past, people have often spoke of what movies like Chinatown, Star Wars, and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, as well as TV Shows like Firefly meant to them. Since I doubt this has been done on this forum, I'll follow through.
Keep in mind that I would qualify as a hardcore gamer, one who judges video games by gameplay and variety rather than story and gimmicks. Mass Effect was an outlandish journey through science fiction, moral parallels, and nostalgia (80's Sci Fi movies to be exact). I felt like it was a huge success throughout the opening. Though what could be considered "dumbed down" by some hardcore RPGers, the RPG elements and statistics are still very well implemented and balanced, and that's really all that matters.
Some people compare Mass Effect to the 1999 PC game Planescape: Torment due to the excessive amounts of dialogue in each game. Planescape was just an interactive novel, but Mass Effect, you could actually choose your character's personality and actions, making it all the more of a roleplaying game.
That aside, Mass Effect was such a refreshing journey from all the overly gritty Sci Fi games out there in post apocalyptic futures and doomed worlds. Not to say that I don't like games like that, we all just needed some genuine escapism.
The whole grittiness of every game in the Sci Fi game scene seemed to be an unfortunate parallel to my hatred of modern consumerism and corruption around me, it seems. Mass Effect not only made me feel like a carefree child again, it made me hopeful for the industry's future.
(This was a rough essay, and it will be edited and added onto in the future).
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Post by Hodster on Jul 31, 2009 17:05:27 GMT 1
When I first saw Mass Effect I was like "Holy crap that loooks awesome!" and after looking at it for a little bit I could tell this was going to be a awesome game. So I preordered it right away. When I played it I was just amazed by it. It was like you were playing the main role in your own Scifi TV show. The fact that you can continue playing your Shepard in the next ME games just blew my mind.
Mass Effect has become my favorite game and it is really the Mass Effect community is really the only community that I'm active in. Mass Effect is one of the best things to be created.
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Post by Zarsthor on Jul 31, 2009 19:16:31 GMT 1
If I'm entirely honest my indoctrination into the mass effect galaxy didn't start well.
Hubby and me were buying are first console together. DS does not count because we bought separate ones due to wanting to play pokemon together. As we were getting ready for out new TV and Xbox to arrive we looked at all the games out and started buying them ready to play. I wasn't very interested in most of the stuff that was out. It all seemed to man orientated, lacking in plot and well boring in a go here shoot that kind of way. I ordered a number of interesting looking games including Eternal Sonata which turned out to be a pile of shit. My hubby was picking out games at the local Game Station one day on the 2 for £30 lists. He picked up a copy of Mass Effect and said I'd probably like it but I shook my head and said "No it looks like a shooting dicks game. They never do Sci-fi right. It always ends up being alien chicks with three boobs and bigger guns pointed by racist aliens or racist humans." He then told me it was by the same people who made Jade Empire and I allowed him to buy the game but still said I wasn't going to play it. A couple of months later, I get this really bad chest infection and pleuracy which stops me from being able to sleep so I turned on the xbox and looked through the game list. Mass Effect was the only one I ahdn't looked at and I thought, why not. I put the game in and the trailer thing happened. I wasn't impressed. I started a character and wasn't impressed. I fiddled with the character parameters for an hour and thought "Yeah this game is going to be mostly about this sims section and less game isn't it." My hubby then walks in and sees me making a mutant. Thats when he decided he was going to build a character that looked just like me and Zarsthor Shepard was born. lol I start the game and a boring talk over starts. I am not impressed. Joker and some dickwad start bitching whilst my jewish looking self stands behind them. I am not impressed. I go to the meeting room after getting lost for a while and see Nihlus. I'm impressed at his zebra print but nothing else. Reaper attacks Eden prime video. Yeah not impressed... not impressed all the way to the citadel. Meet some stupid council members and really not impressed. Go to the wards and see Chora's den. Stays there for a while admiring the asari dancer. Ok that was pleasant. Garrus does a rolling shot thing and saves Michel. Impressed at Garrus and hopes I will keep him. Wrex. Very impressed but sitll not impressed at clunky loading trouble game. I remained that way until the galaxy map and then I was impressed. I loved that bull.
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Post by Knightfall on Jul 31, 2009 19:25:17 GMT 1
Mass Effect was the sole reason I wanted an Xbox 360 so bad. I'm a really big fan of anything Bioware's done since Knights of the Old Republic, so I was thinking since the same writers and creative team were working on ME, it was the game to own.
I admit, when I finally played it, there were many things that I didn't particularly like about it: pretty much everything in between the main quest, sidequests and combat included. I didn't like how the only enemy that I really faced was different forms of geth, and that got a bit repetitive over time.
But! That's just the way I am. When you have an epic and entertaining story like Mass Effect with so many storylines and so much going on, then the little combat (and MAKO levels, omg hate) scenes tended to get me frustrated that the story was interrupted.
It's a great game, though. Obviously, since it inspired me enough to write nearly 50k words of fanfiction for it. I thought the writing was excellent, the romance scenes had the proper amount of build-up, and that big space battle at the end was just plain awesome.
Plus, Joker and Garrus just plain rock. xD
I'll be in line the first day for ME2. I'm anxious to see how they've improved and where the story could go next.
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Post by Zarsthor on Jul 31, 2009 19:33:24 GMT 1
I'm with you on that Knighty. That end battle was so jaw dropping I thought I had died by the end of the game. By the way, where have you been Knighty? I've ... missed your presence.
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Post by Mister Buch on Jul 31, 2009 23:53:54 GMT 1
Nice music Cali That's a great movie, too- and appropriate because Mass Effect reminded me of it from the word go. As you say, 80's sci-fi movies. Since Knights of the Old Republic (which made me into a Star Wars fan, and RPG fan and a gamer) I have been in love with Bioware and unable to fault them. When hey anounced Mass Effect I knew I had to get it immediately and I decided instantly that I'd love it. Normally when I spend so much time and effort getting excited about something I end up not liking it at all. Mass Effect is one of the rare exceptions. I remember being blown away by the graphics and animation on the faces and the completely-acted (and well-acted at that) script, including every line for the player character in two genders. Jennifer Hale's acting in particular just instantly put the game in a class of its own. As a very casual gamer, things like plot and acting and music are very important to me, and this is where ME not only excels but soars above all the competition. The game has three romance options, gorgeous locations in a big and lovingly-designed sci-fi Universe, that fantastic real-time dialogue, great and original characters (Ashley in particular is brilliant) and a main antagonist who you can convince to commit suicide. I was blown away by it. Not quite as much as KotOR, mind.
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Post by Zarsthor on Aug 1, 2009 0:47:55 GMT 1
lol Thats an interesting reason to like a game. lol
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Post by Tillian Panthesis on Aug 1, 2009 11:45:20 GMT 1
In a game designer student point of view, Mass Effect is a perfect example where both storyline and gameplay are heading in the future when it comes to push to shove in terms of shaping up what storyline and gameplay surposed to be when going hand in hand.
From shaping your own Shepard to the persona you to seeing the physical result of choosing your own choices, Mass Effect is getting closer in terms of immersive RPG session. Instead of reading the text to choose your dialogue, now you pick out the simplest instinctive choices from the wheel to express your opinion. As the result of it, you can see how your Shepard convery their thoughts into the world, which make you feel a greater emotional attachment to the game itself. Shepard, all the npcs, the world, everything.
Now as a gamer myself, that's the main reason I've nagged my brother to have his unused xbox so I could play Mass Effect.
When I first saw Mass Effect, I was curious because I've used to play BioWare's older games like NWN. Of course I've enjoyed NWN, so I've decided to buy it since I've kinda missed the good old days where I've used to get engaged into the world in a creative way like RP your own avatar... thanks to BioWare, So I've took it home and pop the disc in.
At first, it took me a while to get used to the game itself since I'm not a shooter fan but after a while I was hooked again and getting all emotional with my character, just like the good old NWN days.
From the presentation right down to the nitty gritty gameplay, it was very entertaining and enjoyable at the same time. The Characters are well thought out, the storyline might be a tad rough but it's still good and the graphics when not having some loading problems, are realistic enough that it feels immersive.
My only gripe about is the side quests are a tad disconected, the texture popping that breaks off the immersive feeling and well... the armour. I kinda wished you have the option to customise the apearce of your armour like in certain other games.
Otherwise I'll be pre-ordering the Special edition.
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Post by Zarsthor on Aug 1, 2009 15:34:43 GMT 1
I agree with the customizing armour. I also wanted to customize my voice. Would of loved a cockney commander Shepard. lol
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Post by Cali on Jun 27, 2013 0:36:32 GMT 1
What Mass Effect meant to us Well, it sure isn't meaning much to us, now... :/
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Post by Mister Buch on Jun 27, 2013 0:55:51 GMT 1
Still means a lot to me.
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Post by Cali on Jun 27, 2013 0:59:31 GMT 1
Well, I'm glad it still means something to someone. I may hop back into the franchise at some point, just when the dust settles is all...
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Post by Warhammer Gorvar on Jun 27, 2013 1:05:16 GMT 1
The heartzones man....THE HEART ZONES!
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Post by A Normal Pathfinder on Jun 27, 2013 2:56:59 GMT 1
Mass effect showed what gaming really has to offer Mass effect is gaming at its best From the experience To the story And actually having real human emotions for characters You have known for six years Bioware has really come through And will continue to come through
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Post by jklinders on Jun 27, 2013 3:36:42 GMT 1
Perhaps not the best games I ever played but surely to me at least they were the best franchise over all.
Good story, great characters, god laughs, good times only slightly marred by a less than inspired conclusion.
I doubt their continuation of the sage will live up to what they have already done, but if they keep giving me what I have seen then they will keep getting money from me.
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