Mass Effect 2

 PC
User Score
8.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 5738 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5,081 out of 5738
  2. Mixed: 426 out of 5738
  3. Negative: 231 out of 5738
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  1. DonC.
    Jan 30, 2010
    7
    It's a good game that i can't get into. maybe it's me. or maybe it's the clunky combat system. controls and movement are not as refined as uncharted 2. maybe it's the graphics. yeah, excellent facial models but a lot of jaggies and bland textures everywhere else (even on 16x AA). or maybe it's the mini-game, good thing they are optional, and the sometimesIt's a good game that i can't get into. maybe it's me. or maybe it's the clunky combat system. controls and movement are not as refined as uncharted 2. maybe it's the graphics. yeah, excellent facial models but a lot of jaggies and bland textures everywhere else (even on 16x AA). or maybe it's the mini-game, good thing they are optional, and the sometimes funny AI (both friendly and enemy). the best feature of ME2 are story, voice-acting, and atmosphere. all in all, no way this game is a 10 or maybe it's just me.… Expand
  2. JMDubya
    Mar 10, 2012
    5
    Mass Effect 2 is the definition of hit-and-miss. Story-telling is great while the story itself was barely satisfactory. Fighting the various Geth incarnations was thrilling, where swatting the husks on the Collector's ship was frustrating. That mission is at best a fly swatting simulator, at worst, the laziest level design I've ever seen. If you want Sci-Fi story, watch Fire Fly. Grab ME2Mass Effect 2 is the definition of hit-and-miss. Story-telling is great while the story itself was barely satisfactory. Fighting the various Geth incarnations was thrilling, where swatting the husks on the Collector's ship was frustrating. That mission is at best a fly swatting simulator, at worst, the laziest level design I've ever seen. If you want Sci-Fi story, watch Fire Fly. Grab ME2 if it's in the bargain bin.… Expand
  3. CommissarPetitt
    May 23, 2013
    6
    The RPG elements have been removed almost entirely of this game and makes this game only a third person shooter. The story in the game is full of as many plot holes as a cardboard box after you took a tommy gun to it, and the characters, although good, have no purpose of being there for the most part. if you want a nice TPS this game is for you, otherwise just find something else you willThe RPG elements have been removed almost entirely of this game and makes this game only a third person shooter. The story in the game is full of as many plot holes as a cardboard box after you took a tommy gun to it, and the characters, although good, have no purpose of being there for the most part. if you want a nice TPS this game is for you, otherwise just find something else you will thank yourself latter. There is no connection to the main plot and the events that transpire are pointless. How this game is considered one of the best ever is beyond me but for a TPS it is passable. Overall a 6/10 a above average game that can only be recommended to some shooter lovers of games like Gears of War.… Expand
  4. Meshelle
    Feb 5, 2010
    7
    I came into Mass Effect 2 with high expectations after totally LOVING the original. Bioware, unfortunately, took a few steps in the wrong direction for me. Story? Epic quality was still there from the old game. A wonderful ride and build up. Looking forward to ME3 and seeing how this all works out. Gameplay? Ehhhh...I have a few issues with it. The gun battles had far more the feel of I came into Mass Effect 2 with high expectations after totally LOVING the original. Bioware, unfortunately, took a few steps in the wrong direction for me. Story? Epic quality was still there from the old game. A wonderful ride and build up. Looking forward to ME3 and seeing how this all works out. Gameplay? Ehhhh...I have a few issues with it. The gun battles had far more the feel of other console shooters than what most would expect from other RPG type games...no health bar, no needing to heal your health, you just...healed if you found cover and stopped getting shot. It makes the battles easier, but...I'm not all about the easy. inventory. Whyyy did you do this Bioware? Looting and customization and the like are bread and butter! Without those, it's just another shooter where you're trying to keep your ammo up and money rolling in. I love looting, never knowing what you'll pick up next, how well it'll protect you, mod your guns/armor, or kill the enemy even better. Current 'inventory' system or lack thereof is a definite lose for me. Flying around the galaxy and scanning planets. C'mon!! This is tedious and boring! Shepard is the commander of the crew...Joker is the pilot of the ship. You should be able to say 'scan this planet' and they do it. You should be able to say 'go here' and it happens. You should not need to fly the ship and manually scan the planet with the equivalent of a metal detector. Fails on both of those issues. The Mako. I loved it. it was awesome! They completely removed that element from the game...no new vehicle to drive around in and explore...just the shuttle to ferry you from the ship to the next shooting battle and back. Ammo - I have no issues with having ammo in the game. But it really doesn't make sense to implement that story-wise after Mass Effect, except for the heavy weapons. Yes, I know they're 'disposable heat sinks'...but that really doesn't make a lot of sense. Why go with a gun that could run out of things that let it shoot, when you could get a model two years older and shoot the night away? Also, the whole thing of 'everyone' using universally sized heatsinks is just...laughable. Different aliens developing different weapons...even if you say it all became sort of conglomerated together after they became spacefaring, how do you explain the more advanced or isolated alien spacefarers using 'the exact same thing'?? Minigames...great change from the previous hacking/bypassing mechanic. All good there. Overall, giving it a 7 for storyline, overall playability, and the fact it doesn't seem to have come out before it was ready like so many games seem to do nowadays. Lost points for some of the changes they've implemented and really hoping they don't continue down this change path for ME3.… Expand
  5. TimD
    Feb 6, 2010
    7
    This felt like just another console port. Most of my time with this game was spent in that tedious planet scanning mini-game trying to get an upgrade which was a total waste of time. A few of the mini-games did not even have mouse support for moving the cursor which was ridiculous (you had to use WASD to move it). The story was really good, but the decisions you made felt like they had no This felt like just another console port. Most of my time with this game was spent in that tedious planet scanning mini-game trying to get an upgrade which was a total waste of time. A few of the mini-games did not even have mouse support for moving the cursor which was ridiculous (you had to use WASD to move it). The story was really good, but the decisions you made felt like they had no impact on the outcome (You prevent your comrade from shooting a guy she is really pissed off at, some other chick immediately kills him). Replay value is extremely low and the game is short. If you absolutely have to play this game, don't do it on PC, play it on an Xbox.… Expand
  6. JustinR.
    Mar 4, 2010
    7
    I enjoyed the game, but I'm shocked at some of these 100 scores. Great graphics, sound, and voice acting. RPG elements downgraded...less skills per class, and seriously shortened skill trees that make you "save up" points in order to skill up, unlike the first ME where you can spend your points as soon as you get them. Planetrary Scanning for resources is about the worst mini-game I enjoyed the game, but I'm shocked at some of these 100 scores. Great graphics, sound, and voice acting. RPG elements downgraded...less skills per class, and seriously shortened skill trees that make you "save up" points in order to skill up, unlike the first ME where you can spend your points as soon as you get them. Planetrary Scanning for resources is about the worst mini-game I've played. Other mini-games (hacking, opening doors) are ok as they do not seriously hinder gameplay. The planetary scanning is almost there to make the game seem longer than it is.… Expand
  7. KillerJ
    Apr 15, 2010
    7
    Huge disappointment. Totaly idiotic story, which takes you nowhere in the end so you spend 30+ hours just to get to the same position you were in the beginning. Story which you have to follow by working for mass murderers and terrorists. Story, where 80% are loyality missions... No RPG just a really poor TPS, idiotic minigames, no armor for squadmate, only two weapons of each category and Huge disappointment. Totaly idiotic story, which takes you nowhere in the end so you spend 30+ hours just to get to the same position you were in the beginning. Story which you have to follow by working for mass murderers and terrorists. Story, where 80% are loyality missions... No RPG just a really poor TPS, idiotic minigames, no armor for squadmate, only two weapons of each category and the most "brilliant" innovation, the ammo system. This all ending with the most funny final boss I have seen in a decade. Sorry Bioware, but an overgrown Terminator may scare 5 years old kids, other people just have to laugh... ME2 is the biggest disappointment I have ever had in my 20 years of playing games. But this will teach me not to preorder games in the future and to to believe all that nonesce and hyped 10/10 reviews.… Expand
  8. acac
    Jan 29, 2010
    7
    To put the rating in perspective. Star Control 2 9/10 ME1 8/10 ME2 7/10 GTA Vice City 9/10 Another World 9/10 I think it has taken a turn from "action-adventure with light rpg elements" to "action-novel with light adventure elements". I'd like to still say it's a 8/10 but it doesn't feel as engaging as ME1, the art/lighting direction/atmosphere (sounds,music) seems weaker. To put the rating in perspective. Star Control 2 9/10 ME1 8/10 ME2 7/10 GTA Vice City 9/10 Another World 9/10 I think it has taken a turn from "action-adventure with light rpg elements" to "action-novel with light adventure elements". I'd like to still say it's a 8/10 but it doesn't feel as engaging as ME1, the art/lighting direction/atmosphere (sounds,music) seems weaker. I installed ME1 at the same time to do some comparison and ME2 on-planet locations or the stations aren't quite as compelling. The battles have improved and I like that I could start on the most difficult setting immediately as the first game was rather easy except for couple boss fights, ME2 with Insanity the difficulty is just right. Where in ME1 there was too much easy money and drops of weapons, here atleast with the Insanity setting I feel compelled to get tech upgrades. The down side to this is the new planet scanning minigame, which is ridiculous. First, the scan speed is relative to mouse sensitivity and second it's just completely boring. Star Control 2 did everything* better (*where comparisons can be applied, mainly the exploration/scanning and non-linear feeling story).… Expand
  9. ScottG
    Jan 31, 2010
    7
    It's a decent game, but not really a roleplaying game. Most of the traditional elements of RPGs, like exploration, character development, and loot have been "streamlined" out of the game. What's left is a very pretty third-person shooter with a good story. In sum, great for shooter fans, but RPG fans might want to think twice.
  10. D.S.
    Feb 1, 2010
    7
    I don't feel the need to repeat what has said by millions of gamers and reviewers, so I'll just cut to the chase, which explains why I gave this game an 7 rather than the 10 that I gave ME1. As I have played 100% PC and only PC games in all my life, I am able to smell "CONSOLE ORIENTED GAME" from ten miles away. This game is so rank of CONSOLE that PC gamers will need to plug I don't feel the need to repeat what has said by millions of gamers and reviewers, so I'll just cut to the chase, which explains why I gave this game an 7 rather than the 10 that I gave ME1. As I have played 100% PC and only PC games in all my life, I am able to smell "CONSOLE ORIENTED GAME" from ten miles away. This game is so rank of CONSOLE that PC gamers will need to plug their noses with cement to avoid the that vile substance of CONSOLE from creeping up their nose and leading to the explosion in to tiny gooey bits of one's poor head. EVERYTHING about this game has console caked all over it like a raging infestation, from the uber-clunkazoid controls and the lack of any engaging or all-too-useful RPG elements, to the lack of any challenge whatsoever (on any difficulty). In short, if youre looking for an RPG with interesting, fluid gameplay and a satisfying array of RPG elements, you might want to avoid. Otherwise, if you're looking for a general run-of the mill shooter with a nice blockbuster story, pick it up, you wont be disappointed.… Expand
  11. LarryL
    Feb 19, 2010
    7
    All in all it is a bad shooter with role playing elements. The AI is bad, both friend and foe. Fighting is easy; just stay in cover and wait to shoot, regardless of the difficulty level...BUT the story is good, and the NPC:s are interesting. Space exploring quite boring, just point and click your ass off, but every planet has a detailed inscription and they make sense. Kinda. But to say All in all it is a bad shooter with role playing elements. The AI is bad, both friend and foe. Fighting is easy; just stay in cover and wait to shoot, regardless of the difficulty level...BUT the story is good, and the NPC:s are interesting. Space exploring quite boring, just point and click your ass off, but every planet has a detailed inscription and they make sense. Kinda. But to say it's a best game ever made...hope not. It's not even a game at times, just an interactive movie.… Expand
  12. SteveM
    Feb 26, 2010
    7
    It's an okay game, but nowhere near as good as ME1. The shooter mechanics are better this time around, but the story and RPG elements are stripped down. Character progression and customization is pretty much none-existant. The writing is pretty terrible. They used a different writer for ME2 and it was pretty obvious. While the characters are good and the dialogue is excellent, the It's an okay game, but nowhere near as good as ME1. The shooter mechanics are better this time around, but the story and RPG elements are stripped down. Character progression and customization is pretty much none-existant. The writing is pretty terrible. They used a different writer for ME2 and it was pretty obvious. While the characters are good and the dialogue is excellent, the storyline is garbage and I probably won't bother playing through ME2 again anytime soon.… Expand
  13. ChrisR
    Feb 9, 2010
    7
    First off, I want to say I'm not a hater or a lover of this game. Reviews of this game have been astoundingly good but honestly I didn't find it to be anything special or groundbreaking. ME2 continues Bioware's legacy of great RPG games with a deep, intriguing storyline as always. However, it doesn't flow as well as past Bioware games. The one word that pops into my First off, I want to say I'm not a hater or a lover of this game. Reviews of this game have been astoundingly good but honestly I didn't find it to be anything special or groundbreaking. ME2 continues Bioware's legacy of great RPG games with a deep, intriguing storyline as always. However, it doesn't flow as well as past Bioware games. The one word that pops into my head while playing this game is "formulaic" because every level is designed the same. Every planet you go to, it's "find some person" or "kill this dude", which results in you having to do some trivial task. The task usually is just "survive from point a to point b." As you travel, it's one hallway leading to an open area...guess what it's an ambush..another hallway, hallway, open area again, elevator, repeat it all again. I don't really know how to describe it but it just feels super repetitive. Yeah each "mission" has a story that goes with it but in terms of gameplay/level design it's all identical. On the bright side though, I loved the fact that there are 10 members in your party (11 with DLC) and each is very well developed. Gun selection is surprisingly diverse for an RPG...close to 25-30 weapons in all. Oh and unfortunately for PC gamers, the UI has been overhauled and is more friendly for consoles so yeah. Mass Effect 3 is in production but the ending of ME2 is really lame...it's like ME3 is really ME2 part 2. ME2 didn't have an ending really like ME1 did. I know my thoughts have been a little scattered throughout this but hopefully my review sheds some light on the strengths and weaknesses of this game. If you take anything out of this review, take this advice: don't expect anything groundbreaking or you'll be disappointed. It's definitely a fun game but a 94/100...really?… Expand
  14. RobC
    Mar 3, 2010
    7
    Awesome graphics, images and voice talent...but only decent game play...it's just that it's very 'you have to go here and do this' to continue through the game. Additionally there is no real freedom of movement, you cannot jump over things or climb to different locations unless it is coded into the game. It's just too limited, maybe I'm spoiled by MMOs, the Awesome graphics, images and voice talent...but only decent game play...it's just that it's very 'you have to go here and do this' to continue through the game. Additionally there is no real freedom of movement, you cannot jump over things or climb to different locations unless it is coded into the game. It's just too limited, maybe I'm spoiled by MMOs, the Elder Scroll series or even the Baldar's Gate 2 but you cannot leave the coded area of play which basically gives you one option to get to the end. Brilliant to look at yet lacking in several ways...I'm really surprised to see so many '100' scores on the official critics page.… Expand
  15. Ben
    Jan 29, 2010
    7
    Its cool but when you play it A LOT it gets so boring you hardly have any guns but yes i know great graphic but miner glitches need to be fixed and also the catacters,Some of the level are awsome and difficulty is awsome so a give it a thumbs up and player out there you should get it and all and all its Thrilling and Fun i Give at least a 6.5-7
  16. ChrisW
    Feb 15, 2010
    7
    Mass Effect 2 was a really good game, but it was too linear. In that game, you were basically told what to do every step of the way and the discoveries made on the important missions didn't really carry as much weight as the did in ME1. In ME1, you really didn't know what to expect, but in ME2, you knew what you were up against every time. I also dislike the leveling system. But Mass Effect 2 was a really good game, but it was too linear. In that game, you were basically told what to do every step of the way and the discoveries made on the important missions didn't really carry as much weight as the did in ME1. In ME1, you really didn't know what to expect, but in ME2, you knew what you were up against every time. I also dislike the leveling system. But overall graphics and gameplay is really good.… Expand
  17. frax_bigos
    Mar 28, 2011
    7
    Too many differences between the first and second chapter of this title may disorient some Mass Effect's fans. The game is drastically action-oriented and it should be classified as an action-rpg.
    The game experience is fun and immersive. It has many strengths, but also some weaknesses that puts it still away from being a true masterpiece. Pros:
    -Great storyline: worthy of Star Wars    Too many differences between the first and second chapter of this title may disorient some Mass Effect's fans. The game is drastically action-oriented and it should be classified as an action-rpg.
    The game experience is fun and immersive. It has many strengths, but also some weaknesses that puts it still away from being a true masterpiece. Pros:
    -Great storyline: worthy of Star Wars series
    -Detailed background history
    -Great character psychological profiles
    -Fluid and intensive action
    -Immersive scenarios
    -Good sound-tracks
    -Many hours of game

    Cons:
    -Too easy, even the most difficult levels of play
    -Some graphical glitches in the dialogues
    -Really poor and boring exploration feature
    -Few and anonymous sub-quests

    Love it or hate it... two thumbs up for me!    … Expand
  18. HighwayUK
    Sep 5, 2011
    7
    Expands the story very well, although heavily spoilt by amount of DLCs that you have to buy to make the game even halfway decent in length. Paid DLCs is a ripoff no matter how it's marketed, the game is VERY short even with them all.
  19. fastblood
    Mar 6, 2012
    5
    Though expanding the universe and bringing in more colorful characters, the overall story falls flat on its face when it comes to wrapping the game up. The cheapness and lack of interest from the team during the final moments is almost palpable. There is a decent amount of character customization, but far less when compared to the previous installment. Exploring the different planets is aThough expanding the universe and bringing in more colorful characters, the overall story falls flat on its face when it comes to wrapping the game up. The cheapness and lack of interest from the team during the final moments is almost palpable. There is a decent amount of character customization, but far less when compared to the previous installment. Exploring the different planets is a fun affair, but lacks solidness.

    Also, the fact that the game is bogged down by countless DLC snippets of storyline leaves a bad taste in this gamer's mouth. I am all for more content, but the majority of it felt as though it were being ripped out from the main game on the disc. The days when video games were video games, instead of constant sources of income for companies that already have billions of dollars are long, long gone.    … Expand
  20. grazr
    Sep 13, 2012
    5
    The game is good and a must play for ME fans, but the move from non-ammo count firearms to ammo seems almost nonsensical as it completely changes how one sees the unique futuristic weapons. Scrounging for ammo is one of the least enjoyable aspects of shooters. Game was kinda ruined by the constant purposeful delaying of the final mission and the environment (galaxy) seemed so much moreThe game is good and a must play for ME fans, but the move from non-ammo count firearms to ammo seems almost nonsensical as it completely changes how one sees the unique futuristic weapons. Scrounging for ammo is one of the least enjoyable aspects of shooters. Game was kinda ruined by the constant purposeful delaying of the final mission and the environment (galaxy) seemed so much more claustrophobic for some reason. Due to the above issues the game feels more of a grind than the first.… Expand
  21. Kalfear
    May 18, 2013
    5
    In short to keep with game play ability length. Mass Effect 2 is a Action third person shooter first and foremost.
    ANYONE thinking ME2 would continue on the deep and compelling Universe and story lines set up in Mass effect will be greatly disappointed. Even the save game transfers from ME are mostly meaningless as all the carry over choices (with exception of 1 but ill not ruin that    In short to keep with game play ability length. Mass Effect 2 is a Action third person shooter first and foremost.
    ANYONE thinking ME2 would continue on the deep and compelling Universe and story lines set up in Mass effect will be greatly disappointed. Even the save game transfers from ME are mostly meaningless as all the carry over choices (with exception of 1 but ill not ruin that here) are minimalized and finished off with NO future adventure or interaction (beyond a short conversation here and there).

    In short the Open World Storyline design of Mass Effect is removed and replaced with a singular Linear Third Person Shooter design.

    now none of that is terrible (well other then short length of game, thats unforgivable), if thats what you went in expecting. Sadly EA marketted this game as the spiritual and RPG expansion of the first to up box sales at release. Typical EA.

    Mass Effect 2 is a Sci Fi third person shooter. Its has semi interesting characters and you even get to decide who you romance (WOOT, from choosing if a alien speices lives or dies in ME1 to who you get a black screen with in ME2).

    In the end, If you like the Mass Effect Universe and like shooters, you will like this game
    Just dont go into it thinking your getting the next installment of the original Mass Effect RPG. That franchise stopped production after #1    … Expand
  22. WyattTheAwesome
    May 30, 2013
    5
    Mass Effect went from being a wonderful, epic RPG that was very unique, to a poor cover based shooter. I don't hate cover based shooters, but Mass Effect 2 did a terrible job with it. The enemies are predictable and do the same damning thing every time that it just becomes boring! I can't recommend this game, but it doesn't mean it was bad. Just very disappointing if you played the original.
  23. Osmium
    Jul 30, 2013
    7
    By far the best part of the series. Mass Effect 2 offers great RPG gameplay within a very well-designed world, tense atmosphere, interesting characters, and some choices and decisions that really matter (at least to some extent). Half of the game is exploring, talking to people, making decisions. I have to admit that I never really very much liked the other half: The actual gameplay isBy far the best part of the series. Mass Effect 2 offers great RPG gameplay within a very well-designed world, tense atmosphere, interesting characters, and some choices and decisions that really matter (at least to some extent). Half of the game is exploring, talking to people, making decisions. I have to admit that I never really very much liked the other half: The actual gameplay is rather dull, but for a third person cover shooter, it does provide a decent gameplay experience. It's a bit disappointing that this is actually the part of the series with the RPG elements dumbed down the most (a lot more in ME1, a bit more in ME3), but still a very good game with excellent storyline.… Expand
  24. CoreGamer1408
    Dec 19, 2018
    7
    More polished than the first game, but more dumbed down combat, inventory, exploration than the first game. Replacing the fun real time land exploration in a buggy with a crappy space probe mini game on board the command ship just hell and no. Story felt weaker and just a filler until they could release the next game.
  25. Sirius
    Sep 29, 2011
    7
    Mass Effect 2 is a game based on races and universal proportions. It is a Third-Person Shooter with RPG elements and levelling system, seem similar to Bethaseda's Fallout 3 and Gears of War. It is developed by Bioware and Produced by EA.

    To start off with the advantages to this game brings is it's newly improved user-friendly GUI than the one previously used in Mass Effect 1 letting    Mass Effect 2 is a game based on races and universal proportions. It is a Third-Person Shooter with RPG elements and levelling system, seem similar to Bethaseda's Fallout 3 and Gears of War. It is developed by Bioware and Produced by EA.

    To start off with the advantages to this game brings is it's newly improved user-friendly GUI than the one previously used in Mass Effect 1 letting players decide their custom characters and their 'powerups' that they may use. but reductions in custom armour might disappoint fans. Bioware has introduced many optimizations, making performance better. Visuals are on a high standard, giving low-poly models a high-resol look. Gameplay is frantic and fast yet feels less of a challenge than that of Mass Effect 1, it fails to become more strategic and more Gears of War-esque fighting. Landscapes are lush and surreal giving the player or user that xenophobic feel. Artificial intelligence is realistic if a little untactical, if any player hides it does not move if it has superior damage it simply stays put on any difficulty.

    Mass Effect introduces innovative quasi-Fallout dialogue choices, giving the user to become more of a "Paragon" or "Renegade" soldier, deciding the overall afflictions decided in the running franchise. Characters have interesting backstories and plots but yet feel somewhat impersonal to the player, disrupting their curiosity to know more about the fictional characters, leaving the interaction a little dry during cutscenes, leaving players to read about them using 'Codex'.

    Mass Effect 2's minigames, while novelty in their own right, give the player larger abilities by extracting minerals for different planets, somewhat supporting the lack of customization mentioned before, the armour cannot not be changed but can be coloured to suit the players taste. Overall, I'd would rate this game a 7, it is not as good as it's predecessor ME1 but definitely improves and elminates niggles that would otherwise, frankly, irritate the player. It's lasting appeal is little though, giving the player little reason to play it again on a harder level. Difficulty is sustained well but not enough for extraordinarily hardened players such as myself.    … Expand
  26. Duderoth
    Feb 24, 2012
    5
    I'm sorry I just don't get it. I don't understand how anybody could like this game better than ME1. I guess the visual style was sleeker? People thought the controls and fighting mechanics were better? Here's what I've come to realize. Mass Effect was a great RPG, with some action/3PS (3rd person shooter?) elements mixed in. Mass Effect 2, was an action game at heart, with someI'm sorry I just don't get it. I don't understand how anybody could like this game better than ME1. I guess the visual style was sleeker? People thought the controls and fighting mechanics were better? Here's what I've come to realize. Mass Effect was a great RPG, with some action/3PS (3rd person shooter?) elements mixed in. Mass Effect 2, was an action game at heart, with some pretty shoddy RPG elements. Gone are the multiple tiers and classes of armor, with corresponding types and tiers of upgrades. Gone is any tactical setup of your squad for combat. Just spam all of the abilities you can at the enemy. Gone is a much more detailed and better implemented leveling point system. And gone is planetary exploring, which I think would have been cooler if they fleshed it out instead of getting rid of it entirely. People say the combat in ME2 was better. Not to me. I read all the codex. What they had implemented in 1 made sense with the lore. Didn't like overheating? Too bad, get a *better weapon* or *better upgrades*. Jesus it's called customizability. That's what an RPG is all about. There were some *really* cool things they implemented in 2, however. So here is the good part of the review. Just the plain fact that you could actually continue a character on from 1 was amazing to me. However, I thought ME2's characters were better than 1's anyway, so I'm glad you got to work with an almost entirely new cast. (Although they kept my favorite Quarian :D.) Planet scanning was also way better than that side quest to find minerals from ME1, and I appreciated that you could actually integrate resources you find into your ship and customizing your character. Although once again, I would appreciate more options. Finally, there were things I thought were better and worse about the story. I really liked the loyalty missions, but I think it would have been better to have a central questline instead of making the loyalty missions the central component of the game. The problem here was that the story lacked focus, as there was literally no plot up until the end when you finally did the suicide mission (which was awesome!!!) ME1, by comparison, had an extremely focused central questline, but lacked in detailing the side characters perhaps a little bit more. So that's pretty much it for this review. Overall, I think what really got to me was that they took what was supposed to be an RPG series and kinda did away with all that. I didn't appreciate that very much. But since I am all about story, I will say that Mass Effect continues to have a strong story and character design, just perhaps not at the same time. I am still looking forward to ME3.… Expand
  27. ChadW
    Feb 13, 2010
    7
    While technically the game is superior to the first game a lot of the spark was lost in the sequel. It has much improved combat, the voice and digital acting is great and the attention to character development is much appreciated. However the complete lack of acknowledgment of the previous games decisions and the removal of some of the previous games most important characters takes away a While technically the game is superior to the first game a lot of the spark was lost in the sequel. It has much improved combat, the voice and digital acting is great and the attention to character development is much appreciated. However the complete lack of acknowledgment of the previous games decisions and the removal of some of the previous games most important characters takes away a lot of the emotional attachment fans of the first game may be expecting to find.… Expand
  28. hit925
    Nov 22, 2011
    7
    This game was definately good but I didn't see as much in it as many others. It looks great and the voice acting I think is top-notch. However, while at first it seems really good, the shooting becomes a bit monotonous later on (cover, shoot, cover, shoot. I know shooting is always like that but still....). In addition, you have to gain necessary upgrades by scanning which is just sheerThis game was definately good but I didn't see as much in it as many others. It looks great and the voice acting I think is top-notch. However, while at first it seems really good, the shooting becomes a bit monotonous later on (cover, shoot, cover, shoot. I know shooting is always like that but still....). In addition, you have to gain necessary upgrades by scanning which is just sheer boredom and the game seems like such a chore at times to do side-missions for no particular reason and if you don't do them then that character of your team dies. Nowhere near a bad game, it's very enjoyable in parts, just not as great as I was expecting.… Expand
  29. Herbis
    May 9, 2013
    5
    One word to describe this game would be: betrayal.
    In order to round up a greater audience for the game, they made the game as similar to any other game out there, mainly Halo.
    RPG elements-removed, no-ammo-removed, planet exploration removed. Mass Effect 1 wasn't a pure open world game, but hey, compared to Mass Effect 2 you could call it just as open as GTAs. I mean Mass Effect 2 is    One word to describe this game would be: betrayal.
    In order to round up a greater audience for the game, they made the game as similar to any other game out there, mainly Halo.
    RPG elements-removed, no-ammo-removed, planet exploration removed.
    Mass Effect 1 wasn't a pure open world game, but hey, compared to Mass Effect 2 you could call it just as open as GTAs. I mean Mass Effect 2 is so linear, so that a monkey with a controller could complete this game on easy (you'd have to teach him to shoot and collect ammo if you'd want him to beat harder difficulties).
    Don't get me wrong, the story is great and all, but the gameplay is awful at this point. The second time I played it I used mods to make it feel more like the first game.
    Another annoyingly stupid thing is the DLCs. There are too many of them. Ok, maybe that's not the biggest problem point. They are to expensive for what they are. You wont get more than 2 hours of gameplay with each of them, but they sure cost like if they were at least 10 hours of gameplay. And the fact that the characters got released one by one after release, you had to replay the game over and over again, if you wanted to have the full experience with each of them. It's just frustrating, if you want to know every little bit of the story, which is the best part of the game.
    Essentially, this game was a big disappointment for me, and didn't feel like a Mass Effect game, at least gameplay wise. The removal of all the best stuff from Mass Effect 1, was the worst part for me, that really hurt the franchise in my eyes.    … Expand
  30. marc5477
    Jan 11, 2015
    5
    Its not an RPG. Its an action adventure like Zelda minus fun puzzles but with a complex story. Its not bad as an action adventure game but unfortunately they bore me to tears. The big problem is that I have played so many games that no story has felt even remotely original since KotOR. Since then, that story has been redone a few dozen times (Atlus I am looking at you lol). Since storiesIts not an RPG. Its an action adventure like Zelda minus fun puzzles but with a complex story. Its not bad as an action adventure game but unfortunately they bore me to tears. The big problem is that I have played so many games that no story has felt even remotely original since KotOR. Since then, that story has been redone a few dozen times (Atlus I am looking at you lol). Since stories are no longer original, I depend on RPG elements to give me something to enjoy. Without them, I get bored quickly. Even Mass Effect 1 felt like RPG lite to me but it was still good.

    That said, let me point out that there is some good here for an adventure game. Voice acting was fine, graphics look good, combat was fun (relatively speaking from my perspective) and there is a lot of content. The bad news is that without heavy RPG elements it felt like a FPS MMO (hollow). Characters didnt really have a lot of "character." Quests... well we have seen them all so nothing new here. Areas were too static and nothing from ME1 seemed to change anything important in ME2. I felt especially bored and dreaded going to the citadel. Other areas are linear which was nice for me because I didnt want to linger out of boredom.

    Overall, its a good game. It is highly overrated but sales numbers speak louder than words.

    ME1 (new IP) - 3.6m (on only PC and XBOX)
    ME2 (riding ME1 reputation) - 5.2m (on PC, PS3 & XBOX)
    ME3 (riding ME2 reputation) - 5.3m (almost no change)

    Clearly, by looking at the above. The franchise became stagnant as of ME2. If there is an ME4 I would expect sales to drop.    … Expand
  31. GeorgeA
    Jan 25, 2011
    6
    Mass Effect 2 definitely has positive sides, but it's terribly overrated. The plot is mediocre at best, half of the game you will be just looking for your future team members and only some of them (like Samara, Garrus or Tali) are interesting, the rest are boring or even annoying. The game is also pretty short for an RPG- about 25 hours if you complete every sidequest and explore half ofMass Effect 2 definitely has positive sides, but it's terribly overrated. The plot is mediocre at best, half of the game you will be just looking for your future team members and only some of them (like Samara, Garrus or Tali) are interesting, the rest are boring or even annoying. The game is also pretty short for an RPG- about 25 hours if you complete every sidequest and explore half of the galaxy. Exploring planets is for resources is extremely annoying and ruins all the fun. Also there is almost no freedom of choice and it is purely cosmetic. The replay value is also pretty low: you will be doing the same thing again and again and changing classes will only make the game harder. So why not just stick to the soldier class, which is virtually unbeatable? The shooting also felt boring and on some levels, i thought i was playing some mediocre third-person shooter with hordes of enemies to beat, rather than an action RPG. By the way, there are almost no RPG elements left and as for what's left, it doesn't have any significant impact on gameplay. Graphically, the game is also a major disappointment. After so many critics praised the game's graphics, I thought the game would look near photorealisitc. What a letdown! Models look generally good, but textures are bland and the game lacks details. As for positive sides, the voice acting is good, storyline has it's good moments, music is excellent, the world, where the game takes place, is also very interesting. In all, the game is worth playing once, but without the replay value, it quickly becomes boring and dull.… Expand
  32. choppy
    Oct 14, 2011
    6
    I agree with other people here: It's a console port shooter. The RPG elements and freedom of the first game are eliminated. It proceeds narrowly on rails, the choices are highly constrained and built around fixed set-pieces. It's still pretty, movie-like and interesting, but just not as good as the first one. BioWare, I am disappoint. I will not be buying ME3, because it will only beI agree with other people here: It's a console port shooter. The RPG elements and freedom of the first game are eliminated. It proceeds narrowly on rails, the choices are highly constrained and built around fixed set-pieces. It's still pretty, movie-like and interesting, but just not as good as the first one. BioWare, I am disappoint. I will not be buying ME3, because it will only be dumbed down and consolized further.… Expand
  33. billtheturnip
    Mar 7, 2012
    7
    Not as great as the first game in my opinion. The fact that the whole game kinda moved in a different direction put me off. Still a decent game that I would play again if I had the time.
  34. bosnian
    Apr 6, 2012
    5
    After completing ME1 and enjoying it quite a bit, the expectations were very high for the sequel. First game laid some great foundations on which the sequel could build on while at the same time the few annoyances from the first game could be improved on or removed, thus making this game a true masterpiece. After watching every publication give this game 9+/10, and in general higher marksAfter completing ME1 and enjoying it quite a bit, the expectations were very high for the sequel. First game laid some great foundations on which the sequel could build on while at the same time the few annoyances from the first game could be improved on or removed, thus making this game a true masterpiece. After watching every publication give this game 9+/10, and in general higher marks then the first game, excitement was high. Well, it took me over a year since purchasing the game to complete it, and not because it was particularly difficult, but rather that I would have to take some serious time away from the game every time I was dissapointed, and there were quite a few of those moments throughout.
    First, the good.
    Cut sequences are longer and better than in the first game. Music, the atmosphere during these scenes are on par with any major movie production and it can be quite breathtaking.
    No more vehicle levels. The biggest annoyance with the first game was the grind that one had to endure while driving the vehicle around for 10-15 min at a time (but it felt like hours).
    There is certain epic feel to the game, that you are a part of a grand story. Writing/action/feel of the main story line is very good.

    However, negatives are many.
    It seems that Bioware took the first game and decided to dumb it down in every aspect. Character build went from 10-18 unique stats to 4-8, depending on the class. Weapons have no stats. Weapons can't be moded (other than generic "all rifles deal +10% damage"). Game truly does feel like a less polished Gears of War with few dialogue options and illusion of choice.
    Main game itself is very short. Maybe 3 hours total? The rest is spent assembling the team (and waiting for the timed event to allow you to finish it) and doing very short and straight forward side quests... and mining. Mining replace Maco levels from the first game and its fun for about 12 seconds. You need to mine to upgrade weapons/armors/gear/ship, thus you need to keep doing this. And it ain't fun at all.
    Finally, the illusion of choice. Your actions from the first game don't matter. Your romanced Liara or Ashley, yeah you get 4 seconds of different interaction and that is about it - you still get to do everything exactly the same. Wrex lived in the first game? Little different dialogue, but still the same game with 100% of the options available. Also, while ME1 may have been somewhat revolutionary in a concept of an adult romance story, in ME2 you are on a ship with bunch of single humans and aliens that at the same point in time will let you make a move on them and every love story is exactly the same arc with cut scenes that are little different (with the exception of the Asaris).
    Finally, the final level, while intense and fast moving, ends with a boss fight that gets introduced to the story in the last 3 minutes of the game. It seems that they felt the game needed something massive at the end and so they created this lame and relatively easy fight against something big.
    Overall, not a bad game. It just is not an RPG, let alone a great RPG. Its a dumbed down ME1 with the same epic feel and few brilliant moments, but less of everything that made ME1 so good.    … Expand
  35. animefan1976
    Mar 12, 2011
    6
    Disappointed in the direction the devs took with this one. The first game was so much better in respect to the the RPG roots it branched from. This game seems more like a comic book than a story in a novel, which is what the first felt like. While it is a fun game, it's really to dumbed down. Many things were made far too simple and the game lost all complexity and about the only thingDisappointed in the direction the devs took with this one. The first game was so much better in respect to the the RPG roots it branched from. This game seems more like a comic book than a story in a novel, which is what the first felt like. While it is a fun game, it's really to dumbed down. Many things were made far too simple and the game lost all complexity and about the only thing you can customize is weapon loadouts and your armor. Can't even customize the weapons themselves anymore. Mirnada is walking around in a catsuit with high heels in space! Come on! Ammo powers passed off as skills by class? What a joke. If I didn't actually care what happened in the story and the romances, I would give this game a far worse review than I have.… Expand
  36. Amig
    Jun 19, 2012
    5
    This game is like high budget action movie. Exciting and visually orgasmic, but only the first time around. After that, you see past the special effects, notice it's flaws and decide it wasn't that great after all. The worst part is that ME2 looks exactly the same on every playthrough. Freedom of choice or non-linearity? Forget it! The only choices you can make are whether you want Shep toThis game is like high budget action movie. Exciting and visually orgasmic, but only the first time around. After that, you see past the special effects, notice it's flaws and decide it wasn't that great after all. The worst part is that ME2 looks exactly the same on every playthrough. Freedom of choice or non-linearity? Forget it! The only choices you can make are whether you want Shep to be a jerkass or a slightly nicer jerkass when talking to people. Even paragon Shepard isn't really someone you'd want to meet. The only thing I really liked about ME2 were the squad members - while they aren't exactly nice people, they're all well written and generally likeable. Overall, ME2 is a dumbed down ME1 (which was hardly a complex cRPG) stripped of it's non linearity and fitted with better graphics and a more Gears of War style combat system. Good for one go, but no more.… Expand
  37. Sirik_Matak
    Jan 11, 2016
    5
    The second game in the series is the middle ground between the mediocrity of Mass Effect 1 and the fu... bad work of Mass Effect 3.

    The writing is significantly worse, and the whole game is one big DLC-quality content. I remember when after the final mission against the Collectors I was thinking "now, the game starts", only to see the ending credits. What? Fortunately, the gameplay    The second game in the series is the middle ground between the mediocrity of Mass Effect 1 and the fu... bad work of Mass Effect 3.

    The writing is significantly worse, and the whole game is one big DLC-quality content. I remember when after the final mission against the Collectors I was thinking "now, the game starts", only to see the ending credits. What? Fortunately, the gameplay improved, meaning the game is a straightforwardly mediocre TPS, with really badly designed levels that don't even try to disguise themselves as another "pop-a-mole" arenas.

    And that's it, really. There's not much to talk about this game, because it's literally some filler quests of day-caring your handicapped companions who can't wipe themselves off after using a toilet.
    Wait, there's one of the best **** in the history of writing. Well, at least it was until Mass Effect 3 was released. It's the Harbringer - writers turned the already weak (with the ending of Mass Effect 1) premise of the Reapers as something really "outworldy", and before they've turned them into dragons with armies of zombies (ME3), in ME2 their leader is some kind of comedian controlling the Collectors, that keeps dying and dying after one headshot (on the highest difficulty setting) from a sniper rifle, spitting out some BS like "you feel the pain Shepard", "you will loose", etc.
    What they forgot to implement in the final version is the line of "I WILL GET YOU NEXT TIME, GADGET!"

    It's a considerable doze of pop-a-mole action for 1€. Well, 5€ is the maximum amount I would pay for this title.    … Expand
  38. godunow
    Mar 22, 2016
    5
    Very mediocre, boring game.

    Production values - best character animations and voice acting I saw - closer to AAA movie than a game - but the story is really lame and shooter gameplay bored me to death. Halfway through I deleted my Origin account to never see this again.
  39. obscurus166
    Mar 16, 2011
    7
    I enjoyed Mass Effect 2, I really did. But when I'd finished it, I felt...unsatisfied. Perhaps it was because the tactical element to the game - issuing orders to squad-mates - was really a bit of a fig-leaf, because I could get on perfectly well without them for most of the game. Perhaps it was because there wasn't much opportunity to interact with my crew. Perhaps it was because theI enjoyed Mass Effect 2, I really did. But when I'd finished it, I felt...unsatisfied. Perhaps it was because the tactical element to the game - issuing orders to squad-mates - was really a bit of a fig-leaf, because I could get on perfectly well without them for most of the game. Perhaps it was because there wasn't much opportunity to interact with my crew. Perhaps it was because the dialogue wheel is perhaps one of the most frustrating means of interacting in a conversation ever devised in an RPG, and what I thought I was saying was frequently not what I actually said. But mostly it's because the game runs on rails. There is no real opportunity to go off on a frolic of your own: BioWare has a story, and they're going to tell it, whether you like it or not. It feels like a smaller game than the original. On the positive side, the graphics are an improvement on the original - which wasn't bad --, the voice acting is good and the plot is engaging, when it's not being rammed down my throat. But there isn't actually very much to do and I did have the impression that I was just pressing buttons between cut-scenes for quite a lot of the game.… Expand
  40. Axlin
    Aug 14, 2010
    6
    Playing this game felt like playing a mediocre movie. Character development was poor, the characters were generally bland, plot development was practically spoon-fed to you (e.g., characters made major discoveries as if through sheer epiphany whereas ME1 would have taken the time to gather and piece together the clues). The game was severely watered-down; I don't need to get into the majorPlaying this game felt like playing a mediocre movie. Character development was poor, the characters were generally bland, plot development was practically spoon-fed to you (e.g., characters made major discoveries as if through sheer epiphany whereas ME1 would have taken the time to gather and piece together the clues). The game was severely watered-down; I don't need to get into the major complaints that you've likely already heard about the new weapon/armor/ammo system - they're pretty common. Recruiting characters was a tad ridiculous because, unlike ME1 where the people you recruited were random encounters during your mission, in ME2 the people you recruit are specifically targeted and all of their recruitment missions made them out to be essentially demigods of raw physical/biotic/mental superiority, only to have them suddenly turn into lame ducks when they were in your party (for the sake of game balance). Half the game's missions involved recruitment and loyalty missions for your squad; there was very little in the way of actual side missions or of a main quest line. You'll waste a ton of time scanning planets for minerals and launching probes to harvest them - a ridiculously tedious process, although not quite as tedious as exploring in ME1 was - and you'll be left wondering where the $%!# element zero is. Character reappearances in this game were awkward and their personalities (except for Garrus/Tali) made huge, seemingly random changes. Speaking of random, the dialog options seemed to award Paragon/Renegade points completely randomly. You'll finish a dialog to find you got both Paragon and Renegade points, wondering where on earth one or the other could possibly have come from. If you decide to be Paragon (good guy), many of the "Paragon" options involve making intimidating threats, extortion, use of force, or even for having somebody killed. That does not sound very "Paragon" to me. Very seldom are the Paragon choices truly "Paragon" in nature. This game was definitely made to be played as a Renegade, which should probably be somewhat expected, considering the entire plot line involves you being forced to work with terrorists and thug gangs.

    All in all, the game was passable, but it simply lost the magic that Mass Effect 1 had, which is a shame because they could have so easily have stuck to the original formula, focused more on making a solid plot with great character development, interesting characters, and a strong quest line, and had an amazing game. But hey, at least EA decided to ship this game with only a simple CD key check, and no other restrictive DRM. That's a huge plus over the first. Still, I wouldn't pay more than 20 bucks for this game. It was simply a bland experience overall. And another note, if you played ME1 on the 360, you may want to Google for a "character import tool" for ME2 so that you can make sure you're truly starting where you left off instead of going with the default story line. It makes a huge, huge, huge difference.    … Expand
  41. fleischverpacku
    Jan 19, 2011
    6
    Downgraded mainstream sequel

    Most missions follow an identical procedure. RPG depht suffers from poorer skilling options and a more linear levelstructure than the first title. architectual patterns often repeat. The story adds additional depht to the universe, but conservative implementations such as ammunition or fuel subvert the logic of the immersive gameworld. Visuals are stunning!    Downgraded mainstream sequel

    Most missions follow an identical procedure. RPG depht suffers from poorer skilling options and a more linear levelstructure than the first title. architectual patterns often repeat. The story adds additional depht to the universe, but conservative implementations such as ammunition or fuel subvert the logic of the immersive gameworld. Visuals are stunning! The characters are well drawn and bring their own background story.    … Expand
  42. PopeR.
    Jan 28, 2010
    5
    Mass Effect 2 for PC has shockingly bad gameplay. The movement controls make it feel like your wearing mittens. There is no way to change the mouse sensitivity. You can only sprint in perfectly straight lines. There is absolutely no smoothness to the interaction with the environment. You would think that there have been no advances in computer games since ME1 came out. I love the Mass Effect 2 for PC has shockingly bad gameplay. The movement controls make it feel like your wearing mittens. There is no way to change the mouse sensitivity. You can only sprint in perfectly straight lines. There is absolutely no smoothness to the interaction with the environment. You would think that there have been no advances in computer games since ME1 came out. I love the characters, the story, the setting. I guarantee you'll never see a demo of ME2 for PC, because nobody who tries it for an hour would ever buy it. Maybe the console versions are better, but the PC version is a horrible disappointment.… Expand
  43. Balobam
    Jun 2, 2011
    5
    Let me start of by saying I don't hate the game, I enjoyed it, for about 4 hours, then I didn't.

    I'd heard a lot of good about this game, so I figured, I'll give it a shot, so I did, and I wasn't disappointed, it had shooting, RPG elements, and some fun psychic moves that let me throw people about, can't complain with that. And I played it, went into one room, hid behind a box and    Let me start of by saying I don't hate the game, I enjoyed it, for about 4 hours, then I didn't.

    I'd heard a lot of good about this game, so I figured, I'll give it a shot, so I did, and I wasn't disappointed, it had shooting, RPG elements, and some fun psychic moves that let me throw people about, can't complain with that.

    And I played it, went into one room, hid behind a box and dispatched the enemies in numerous ways, changing cover now and then. Then the next room, I hid behind a crate and dispatched enemies in numerous ways, changing cover now and then. And again, and again. It never changed, it is at heart, a cover based shooter with some RPG elements, even so, the RPG elements are pretty black and white, "Will I shoot this hopeless orphan with my firey kitten gun? Or will I donate all my limbs to the children in need program? Or perhaps I shall remain in a state of permanent apathy and bypass all these mundane problems.".

    That's not good choice making, it's just saying to you, will you be a bad guy, good guy, or neutral? And it even blatantly tells you which is which, "Say this to appear as a rogue who does his own thing, or say this to appear as Jesus himself".

    I played it for several hours, about 10 I believe, before I realised the gameplay wasn't going anywhere and I was essentially playing Gears of War or Rainbow Six under pretence of an RPG in a 3rd person angle, which is my least favourite kind of shooter regardless, the only game I've played that has done it well is Resident Evil 4, even then I couldn't move whilst I shot.

    The story however did, for the 10 hours I played it, seem good, it may have got better, which wouldn't surprise me, it was honestly memorable and I can see why people enjoy it, but it tried to present itself as more than it was, like a dog that claims it can talk and ride a unicycle, whereas it can only ride a tricycle and has no speech mastery. Impressive for sure, but it's not what I was expecting, and there are other games that do it better.

    My last gripe with the game is Jack, I rescued her from prison where she completely breezed through hundreds of robots and guards alike with not a scratch on her, she was truly unstoppable and I couldn't wait to get her on my team, then when she WAS on my team, an aggressive looking shrub would be enough to subdue this once feared God of a woman. My point here is, don't sell me Wonder Woman and then give me a generic horror film girl who lasts about 3 minutes before deciding to "See what that masked figure wants to talk about".    … Expand
  44. kriskizlyk
    Jan 20, 2012
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. They took away the original concept of Mass Effect and made it a FPS...disappointed but still like the story. I dread the mind numbing planet scanning, would definitely not miss this in the next game.… Expand
  45. OmnipotentGamer
    Aug 5, 2013
    6
    The fact that this game feels like just another generic TPS with a dialogue wheel bothers me if this could've combined the RPG elements of Mass Effect 1 and blended them in perfectly with the new gun mechanics it would've have been much happier, also the fact they give the finger to decisions the player made in ME 1 really bothers me still a fairly decent game.
  46. OhTheDerp
    May 29, 2012
    6
    The least fun in the trilogy. ME2 took almost everything that I loved in ME1 away, but at least they made the controls tighter and much better. It's definitely worth playing, and I've but ~50 hours into it total in two playthroughs, but compared to the first game it just doesn't quite cut it. Even ME3 is better.
  47. wrexmer
    Nov 9, 2011
    6
    Graphics 8/10
    Gameplay 7/10
    Controls 8/10
    Story 5/10
    Characters 9/10
    Level design 8/10
    Presentation 8/10
    User Interface 7/10
    Sounds 7/10
    Music 7/10
  48. Dramatic
    Jan 16, 2012
    6
    Mass Effect 1 was great, it had its problems but they never got in the way of your enjoyment of the game.
    Mass Effect 2 failed as a sequel for many reasons. Before I get to the bad stuff, i will say the things I like.
    The characters, although not brilliant, are well done and entertaining. The graphics are nice and environments are well detailed. The gameplay is great for what it is.    Mass Effect 1 was great, it had its problems but they never got in the way of your enjoyment of the game.
    Mass Effect 2 failed as a sequel for many reasons. Before I get to the bad stuff, i will say the things I like.

    The characters, although not brilliant, are well done and entertaining.
    The graphics are nice and environments are well detailed.
    The gameplay is great for what it is.
    Levels are more diverse than it's predecessor

    Now the bad:

    Mining and exploration is tedious and boring, a well designed level should have all the resources you need.
    The story is horrible, and a slap in the face considering this is from Bioware and a sequel to Mass Effect.
    The DLC stories are what the game should have been about.
    The game is less RPG, and more Gears of War clone.

    Overall, fans of the original may be disappointed, but for what it is, not a bad game.    … Expand
  49. Niceguyreviewer
    Mar 8, 2012
    7
    To start off I'm going to say that I enjoyed the game and I'm giving it a 7/10. This game is best thought of as a separate game from the original Mass Effect. The gameplay is very different, many of the RPG elements that Mass Effect DID have, they have removed in this game; the inventory system from the first game has been removed and replaced with a tiny inventory with a very smallTo start off I'm going to say that I enjoyed the game and I'm giving it a 7/10. This game is best thought of as a separate game from the original Mass Effect. The gameplay is very different, many of the RPG elements that Mass Effect DID have, they have removed in this game; the inventory system from the first game has been removed and replaced with a tiny inventory with a very small selection. Weapon pickups are a very rare and scripted event. The story on its own is good and interesting, the characters are darker and the whole theme of the game seems to have been influenced at least a bit by film noir. The music has perhaps too much orchestra and "epic" sounding music rather than the iconic synthesized space music that was in the original game but it is still present to a reasonable degree. One of my main complaints about Mass Effect 2 is that, rather than keeping the good things and improving upon/ fixing the flaws which were present in the original game, many of the flaws are still present and even some of the good things about the first game are not present in the second. One of these good things which has been removed is something I am very sad about; the planet/ galaxy exploration. In the original game you could drive around in a recon vehicle on the surfaces of many planets even if it wasn't required by the plot. This gave the game a very 'big' feel. The galaxy seemed vast, yours to explore and discover. Now, admittedly, the physics for this vehicle were quite silly and unpredictable and didn't quite work with the hilly terrain, but the music on these planets, the beautiful background art and the cool effects like a blizzard or meteor shower made it an amazing experience. Rather than fixing the handling of this vehicle for the second game, Bioware decided to remove planet exploration completely. They replaced it with the ability to 'scan' planets for resources with the option of occasionally landing for a scripted mission in a small area or corridor shootout. The game suffers for this. The universe seems much MUCH smaller. Scanning planets is very tedious and dull.

    The game also seems a bit rushed or incomplete. The characters don't quite flesh out and some aren't developed very well at all. One example is the character "Garrus" and alien companion who returns from the first game. In Mass effect 1 & 2 you can move around your ship conversing with the various characters who are traveling with you and most of them have quite a lot to say. Garrus, however, keeps telling me to 'wait a bit' because he's in the middle of calibrating something. Garrus was an interesting and relatable character in Mass Effect 1 and a fan favorite and to see him left underdeveloped like this is really quite disappointing.

    Criticism aside, many of the side quests in this game were interesting and the locations were a lot of fun to explore. The story was good sometimes and bad others. Overall I enjoyed the game though it was very different from the first.    … Expand
  50. SoManyGames
    Mar 11, 2012
    5
    My review for this one is similar to the first. Gameplay: Walk slowly down hallways, aim slowly at bad guys, press a button to take cover as they slowly walk and aim at you. Like every other console third person shooter, only especially slow. The story; you are a space marine fighting an alien force bent on destroying life. Sound familiar? It should, and I shouldn't have to list theMy review for this one is similar to the first. Gameplay: Walk slowly down hallways, aim slowly at bad guys, press a button to take cover as they slowly walk and aim at you. Like every other console third person shooter, only especially slow. The story; you are a space marine fighting an alien force bent on destroying life. Sound familiar? It should, and I shouldn't have to list the HUNDREDS of examples. The definition of average. The one thing this game has over similar titles is the speech options and customizations that allow you to feel like your game is special. It's not, but at least they pull off the ability to make you feel it is. Mass effect 2 has one issue in particular that I feel should be discussed. Many of the things you attempt are oddly limited, despite the games hinting towards your ability to accomplish such things. For example, the second time I played the game, I played as fem shep, just so I could totally lez out (Im a typical 20 something bro). The game seemed like it would allow you to do whatever (or whomever) I wished, but then at the end, denied. So I just figured girl on girl action just wasn't in the game...until I found out later that is was, only with specific characters. One of those characters is NOT the girl who says shes slept with women before! Say what you will about gay stuff, but that's just bad game design. A good game will either flat out tell you something is impossible (fable will show you if a character digs chicks before you even talk to them) or never present you with an option to waste your time (halflife has no romance). A bad game design will let the player waste his time doing something it hints towards being possible, only to punish them later. We play games to get away from that crap. Many aspects of this games choose your own adventure style play are bad game design, even more so than the first.… Expand
  51. JonesR
    Feb 17, 2011
    6
    This is a cross between third person shooter Gears of War and RPG Dragon Age. While being good at both genres, the game never strives to be great at either. The graphics, voice acting, and cinematic scenes are what really shines the most. However, the 94 metascore rating seems very generous. The level design is linear, character development is flat, the RPG experience is weak, and theThis is a cross between third person shooter Gears of War and RPG Dragon Age. While being good at both genres, the game never strives to be great at either. The graphics, voice acting, and cinematic scenes are what really shines the most. However, the 94 metascore rating seems very generous. The level design is linear, character development is flat, the RPG experience is weak, and the story provides paltry excitement at best--an over-hyped snoozer.… Expand
  52. agalloch
    Jan 25, 2011
    6
    Starts out with an unnecessary, and hypocritical bang, and doesn't get much better. The characters are stiff in my eyes, though have well developed background stories. The fighting is fun at first, but the game is far too easy and fighting becomes very expected (hint: if you see barriers, you're in for a boring fight). Hacking is interesting, then repetitive and dull. The story is notStarts out with an unnecessary, and hypocritical bang, and doesn't get much better. The characters are stiff in my eyes, though have well developed background stories. The fighting is fun at first, but the game is far too easy and fighting becomes very expected (hint: if you see barriers, you're in for a boring fight). Hacking is interesting, then repetitive and dull. The story is not enough to fill up the lengthy gameplay. Annoying bugs.… Expand
  53. Sapphon
    Jan 17, 2011
    6
    Mass Effect 2 is a very playable, often exciting, beautifully crafted, very flawed game. If it had been named something else, say "Space Times With Ttitielady And Toadman Clone", I'm sure I'd even say I was impressed. But it's not named that; it's named "Mass Effect" and it does not live up to its ambitions in that regard.

    +The game's graphics are pretty. +You don't have to manage your    Mass Effect 2 is a very playable, often exciting, beautifully crafted, very flawed game. If it had been named something else, say "Space Times With Ttitielady And Toadman Clone", I'm sure I'd even say I was impressed. But it's not named that; it's named "Mass Effect" and it does not live up to its ambitions in that regard.

    +The game's graphics are pretty.
    +You don't have to manage your inventory anymore.
    +Play (in combat) as some classes is as engaging as the original; play as others has vastly improved; in no case has it gotten worse. This is a big plus.
    +BioWare's usual well-acted scripts with attention to plot holes and detail.

    -The game has a mere shadow of a plot. Most of the game is incredibly meta about its lack of a plot in a way that will rip you out of the immersion in no time. It is this author's opinion that the writers of this trilogy know what they want to do and how, but only really have the material for games 1 and 3. 2 was a marketing necessity.
    -Some of the game's characters are written like they crawled out of a bad JRPG. Let's not go back to those days.
    -The characters that aren't bad are engaged in some pretty heinously fanservice stuff.
    -If you liked all the inventory management and number crunching from ME1, you'll miss that (I didn't especially).
    -There is a "final boss". And he will make you laugh.
    -The number of choices the player can make that affect the game with ME2 has greatly increased, but they are almost all superficial. Usually when you play a BioWare game, sooner or later you are afforded an option that really clicks with what you've been thinking. In ME2, for the purposes of the meagre plot, the only decision that you might have made that would really change things, you can only make one way. In pen and paper gaming this is called "railroading" and is looked on as very poor writing indeed.    … Expand
  54. CraigL
    Mar 2, 2010
    5
    All I can say is - it's NOT an RPG. Not even nearly an RPG. It's like Gears of War more than an RPG. Ther comes a point when so much that makes an RPG what it is is removed, and you can no longer call a game an RPG. ME2 is the game that takes the p*ss in this regard. It couldn't see the outline of the word RPG with a telescope attached to a pair of binoculars. If you like All I can say is - it's NOT an RPG. Not even nearly an RPG. It's like Gears of War more than an RPG. Ther comes a point when so much that makes an RPG what it is is removed, and you can no longer call a game an RPG. ME2 is the game that takes the p*ss in this regard. It couldn't see the outline of the word RPG with a telescope attached to a pair of binoculars. If you like on rails shooters like Gears of War, then this might be for you. If you were looking for an RPG, don't get conned. This is most definately NOT ONE, I give it 5 because I got it for B/day, played demo night before,(finished demo twice) then took original back to shop unopened (seal intact) and 5 is an average. Why does every game have to become more like "generic shooter 37b" soon they might as well just have one game, and call it "slightly better shooter than the last one 88b" Sad days… Expand
  55. poor
    Feb 16, 2010
    5
    Having removed all the rpg elements as mentioned, this is basically a straight up shooter with gameplay akin to Mafia or Godfather. As a shooter, I've seen £10 russian games be more fun. The only reason this deserves any marks at all is the cinematography, story and production value. Having said that, you might as well read a book. This is pretty much just dross.
  56. RickS.
    Mar 22, 2010
    5
    They stripped out almost every RPG element from the first game. We pretty much don't have stats anymore neither does our guns and armor, can't change squadmates armor, you use the same gun from the beginning to the end of the game, you have like 6 skills and your squadmates have only 4! I bought it expecting a sequel from ME1, not a reboot. If I wanted to play a pure TPS I would They stripped out almost every RPG element from the first game. We pretty much don't have stats anymore neither does our guns and armor, can't change squadmates armor, you use the same gun from the beginning to the end of the game, you have like 6 skills and your squadmates have only 4! I bought it expecting a sequel from ME1, not a reboot. If I wanted to play a pure TPS I would buy a pure TPS.… Expand
  57. Alex
    Jan 30, 2010
    5
    A good game, but nowhere near the same caliber ME1 was. They stripped away almost all RPG elements so it's pretty much a straight up shooter with a good story. No inventory or loot, lack of sidequests, no freedom, no exploration, very linear, barely any use for money, dumbed down leveling system, lack of skills, lack of variation in armor/weapons
  58. anonanon
    Feb 18, 2010
    5
    This isn't an RPG, it's an FPS. Stop trying to convince yourself it's not. If you want an RPG, go play something also by BioWare, DA:O or KOTOR1. BioWare is smart, they target all ends of the spectrum. They release FPS's disguised as RPG's for people like you, who gave this game a 10/10, so you can feel smart. Try this game on "Insanity" as a Soldier/Vanguard. This isn't an RPG, it's an FPS. Stop trying to convince yourself it's not. If you want an RPG, go play something also by BioWare, DA:O or KOTOR1. BioWare is smart, they target all ends of the spectrum. They release FPS's disguised as RPG's for people like you, who gave this game a 10/10, so you can feel smart. Try this game on "Insanity" as a Soldier/Vanguard. It's pathetically easy. ALL your abilities are "make me shoot better" or "make me not die". Story? It sucks. But what can you expect, it's the 2nd part in a trilogy, it always sucks. Companion missions are a joke. Try failing them, I'm pretty sure it's impossible. Weapon variety: none. You can get upgrades that have zero visible difference. All they do is make the game even easier. Replayability? What's the point? It's going to be the same **** again. And this brings up another point. During some sections of the game (no spoilers), it literally does NOT matter what dialogue options you pick, the outcome is the same. Even when one is paragon and the other is renegade. This system of illusive choice feels more like a lie then "RPG freedom". If you're not going to use my input, don't make me sit through 2 minutes of dialogue. Redeeming qualities: everyone likes being over powered. The ability to directly sway conversations with the paragon/renegade interruptions was creative as well. Score: 5/10 because it's not an RPG, it's way too easy, has low replay value, insanely linear, and almost no variety in terms of what your abilities do (kill enemy type A B or C). No, I'm not a troll. I actually do think this.… Expand
  59. Snk
    Mar 12, 2010
    6
    First of all, ME2 is by no means a bad game. The characters are appealing, the graphics are good and the voice acting, while over-the-top at times, is overall convincing. The problem is, unless you've been living under a rock for a past ten years Mass Effect 2 has absolutely nothing new to offer. Recycle a good chunk of plot elements from previous Bioware games, add GoW-style First of all, ME2 is by no means a bad game. The characters are appealing, the graphics are good and the voice acting, while over-the-top at times, is overall convincing. The problem is, unless you've been living under a rock for a past ten years Mass Effect 2 has absolutely nothing new to offer. Recycle a good chunk of plot elements from previous Bioware games, add GoW-style shooting, add a scoop of tedious and pretty much mandatory planet probing and there you have it. The RPG system had been significantly simplified this time around. You still can make choices in dialogues, being a hero or a jerk, whatever you feel like, but ultimately your choices do not affect the game in any significant way. ME2 is also surprisingly short, it took me 23 hours or so to beat it on veteran, while doing all of the side quests and acquiring pretty much all the upgrades. And that is not to mention it's horrible loading times. In short, ME2 is Avatar of video games. It's solid, looks good, and most people will probably enjoy the ride, but it lacks substance, new ideas, and is hardly worth playing through for a second time.… Expand
  60. apaeth
    Feb 19, 2011
    7
    Kill a few enemies, recruit a party member, mine for minerals, purchase upgrades. Rinse and repeat, rinse and repeat, rinse and repeat. Prepare for final battle, engage enemy - GAME OVER!!! A good game but not a great one.
  61. TerrymcG
    Mar 13, 2011
    5
    Mass Effect 2 really is a mixed bag. One the one hand, one can't help but be impressed with the quality of the audiovisual presentation. The voice actors are probably the best in the business and they are able to create an atmosphere unlike in any other games. Especially Jennifer Hale as the female Shepard deserves a lot of praise for her work. The modelers, animators and texture artistsMass Effect 2 really is a mixed bag. One the one hand, one can't help but be impressed with the quality of the audiovisual presentation. The voice actors are probably the best in the business and they are able to create an atmosphere unlike in any other games. Especially Jennifer Hale as the female Shepard deserves a lot of praise for her work. The modelers, animators and texture artists are incredibly talented as well and their work is impressive to behold. Most of the dialog is well written, which is pretty rare for a computer (or should I say video?) game.

    But on the other hand, the actual game play is somewhat clumsy and even boring. Bioware (or perhaps EA?) essentially dropped almost all of the RPG elements and tried to go for a Gears of War type of game play. How ever, they couldn't pull it of. Gears of War is far more fluid and the game play in that game is high octane adrenaline rush. Where as ME2 game play is something from the previous decade. It's unresponsive , repetitive and dull. Duck and cover, point and click. The less said about the embarrassing mini games, the better.

    Bioware prides itself in being able to tell great stories. And while the method of the story telling in ME2 is nice, the actually story is almost non existent. It feels more like a collection of side quests, rather than a really story.

    In the end, one gets the feeling that Bioware is trying to reach out to new gamers. And in doing so, they have decided to ditch the traditional RPG elements. Whether this strategy works for them, I can't really say, but for my part, I will no longer associate the Bioware brand with high quality RPG's. Mass Effect 2 is really an interactive movie with a shoddy fps game. And because games are incredibly expensive, spending money on a mediocrity is simply not worth it. Spend your money on good books or movies instead.    … Expand
  62. karmasleeper
    May 30, 2011
    6
    ME2 PC

    Mass Effect trims many of the RPG elements of the first game resulting in a mostly third person shooter experience. One of my biggest gripes about the first Mass Effect was combat â
  63. StefanS
    Feb 11, 2010
    6
    In spite of having a fun time with this game, i do regret spending money on it. I was expecting a new epic RPG, but it wouldn't provide. This may be great fun for casual gamers, but it lacks depth and complexity in story as well as gameplay mechanics to be more. The main storyline is linear, the only choice you get is when you want to continue. Sidequests are 1 mission each. Missions In spite of having a fun time with this game, i do regret spending money on it. I was expecting a new epic RPG, but it wouldn't provide. This may be great fun for casual gamers, but it lacks depth and complexity in story as well as gameplay mechanics to be more. The main storyline is linear, the only choice you get is when you want to continue. Sidequests are 1 mission each. Missions fall in 2 categories: linear level combat mission and easy puzzles. You cant get lost, and you generally cant lose with a little care applied. Combat is simple and repetitive to the point of feeling like work. There is a little variety, providing 3 types of enemies: ranged and melee standard units and tanks. Take cover by pressing a button, wait for breaks in enemy fire, shoot the enemy with your ranged weapons or magic powers. You dont get to melee (you'd have to leave cover) and if you did there still only was a button-press to swing a fist. Weapon types are useless beyond assault and sniper rifle; there is a shotgun, but its near-useless in even the expected area of use against melee guys that got too close. Just mow 'em down with your assault rifle, it will be faster. The required understanding of game mechanics is minimal; shooting works on everything. A slight bonus is provided for selecting one of 2 basic ammo types, one that burns armor and live-enemies, another to fight machines. The above mentioned tank-types are fought with heavy weapons like grenades/missiles (although shooting still works). There are magic powers that help fight the enemy, falling in the above mentioned categories. These have a long cooldown however, and power-only combat wont work, so it feels awkward to use one every few seconds if you could just keep shooting for the same effect at less work. For lack of real sidequests, you get to find teammates by doing a combat mission, and then to gain the team mates loyality by protecting or killing one of their direct relatives (for lack of work put into depth?) in another combat mission. Doing this unlocks a special ability for the team mate to use. Your main character also gets to learn and use one of the teammates unlocked Loyalty-Abilities. Time spent to unlock almost everything and doing lots of boring ressource harvesting and a few mini-missions on top: 23 hours. When the main campaign moved on after 2 or 3 character additions, getting the others felt like work (and not-getting them and their loyality felt uncomplete). Overall game could probably be completed in 15 or less hours. Rating: 6. Thought of giving it a 7, then recalled i accidently killed half my crew without real warning by re-clicking on the start-mission button of a 1 minute anomaly side-mission after my crew got kidnapped by the main storyline (which is triggered when you accept a mission, but you dont get to DO the mission then, in spite of already leaving the ship!). After re-running 3 hours of gameplay, as the game had deliberately overwritten every auto-save before the side-mission, i then discovered that the cute secretary-like Kelly i had romanced wouldn't even unlock the romance achievement.… Expand
  64. rambostyrer
    Jun 26, 2011
    7
    Good game, But a weaker story, and the fact they cut out most of the roleplaying elements, makes it a weaker game than the first, witch is a shame, because what it does well it does really well. good action sequences, I thought the characters, were a lot more interesting this time, we got to see more of the galaxy, places like illium and the Krogan homeworld were interesting places. SoGood game, But a weaker story, and the fact they cut out most of the roleplaying elements, makes it a weaker game than the first, witch is a shame, because what it does well it does really well. good action sequences, I thought the characters, were a lot more interesting this time, we got to see more of the galaxy, places like illium and the Krogan homeworld were interesting places. So Bioware if you wanna make the third Mass effect a smash hit classic, you take a strong story and the roleplaying elements of the first game, and mix it with the action, and more interesting setting of the second.… Expand
  65. DoctorBabies
    Dec 22, 2011
    6
    i am going to **** about how they ruined this franchise for people that knew enough to know why they liked it. being lazy/removing the rpg elements the devs altered this series drastically (skill tree has been neutered, equipment is vanilla or chocolate, etc.) rendering it another pseudo-immersing over-the-shoulder-kill-things-game that despite being presented as an open world, is really ai am going to **** about how they ruined this franchise for people that knew enough to know why they liked it. being lazy/removing the rpg elements the devs altered this series drastically (skill tree has been neutered, equipment is vanilla or chocolate, etc.) rendering it another pseudo-immersing over-the-shoulder-kill-things-game that despite being presented as an open world, is really a straight line you can jump to different points on.

    they would be better served by just culling what few RPG elements they left in it and going FPS. it gets a 6 because its pretty, and the fights are sometimes interesting.    … Expand
  66. moonlight_shado
    Apr 24, 2016
    5
    They stripped down all rpg-related mechanics. Gameplay become consolized. Story is OK but has nothing to do with previous part. The choices from ME1 also doesn't matter much, it's mostly cosmetics. So, instead of bigger and better rpg we were given shooter game with choices, that pretends to be role-playing game but it's not. Thanks for making us idiots EA/Bio!!
  67. WDI
    Jan 29, 2010
    6
    The PC version is an absolute garbage, controls are sluggish, UI is not adapted for mouse. For instance you cant double click to select items from a menu. Story and especially characters is quite good. On the minus side, it is very linear, small ( the citadel is now the size of a tennis court ). Fights are better than ME1 but repetitive. It is well produced and definitively worth a look.I The PC version is an absolute garbage, controls are sluggish, UI is not adapted for mouse. For instance you cant double click to select items from a menu. Story and especially characters is quite good. On the minus side, it is very linear, small ( the citadel is now the size of a tennis court ). Fights are better than ME1 but repetitive. It is well produced and definitively worth a look.I would rate it 7+ but minus 1 for the horrible PC port.… Expand
  68. DaveG
    Mar 5, 2010
    5
    It's not bad. It ain't an RPG though, and that's what's bummed me out more than anything. 3rd person shooter with a few choices of weapon. If this game had called itself a 3rd person shooter i'd have given it 6 - maybe 7. but I felt cheated cause it called itself an RPG, and it just aint an RPG at all. If even bioware don't do rpg's anymore, and now It's not bad. It ain't an RPG though, and that's what's bummed me out more than anything. 3rd person shooter with a few choices of weapon. If this game had called itself a 3rd person shooter i'd have given it 6 - maybe 7. but I felt cheated cause it called itself an RPG, and it just aint an RPG at all. If even bioware don't do rpg's anymore, and now FFxiii turns out to be another on rails shooter. well there just ain't no single player rpg's left is there.… Expand
  69. Brumbek
    Jul 2, 2011
    7
    First, ME2 has brilliant production values. The art design is amazing and the presentation is stellar, like most BioWare games. But strip away all that, and you have a very lacking game, sadly. Missions are greatly stripped down compared to ME1, and even character interaction is "streamlined" for the sake of "accessibility". Actual driving was replaced with a load screen...physicallyFirst, ME2 has brilliant production values. The art design is amazing and the presentation is stellar, like most BioWare games. But strip away all that, and you have a very lacking game, sadly. Missions are greatly stripped down compared to ME1, and even character interaction is "streamlined" for the sake of "accessibility". Actual driving was replaced with a load screen...physically finding minerals was replaced with the infamous mini-game...weapon customization was removed...how is this progress? But the biggest crime is the story...it's totally contrived. Nobody can explain why the bad guys did what they did...the end boss made no sense and was never explained. Where's Saren when you need him... So sorry to say but ME2 has suffered the BioWare effect where they take a great game and make the sequel vastly inferior in order to misguidedly appeal to the "masses". Well this "masses" effect is NOT making things better. ME2 is still a great game...just fatally flawed and is more of a tragicomedy than its developers realize. I score it a 3 compared to ME1, 8 or 9 compared to most games, and a 7 overall.… Expand
  70. OlafH.
    Feb 4, 2010
    6
    I really wanted to like this game and I was keen about it, until i got through. I am sadly disappointed and I know this is a very subjective estimate. It may be a very well made game for the mediocre shooter crowd, but it's a letdown for rpg players. Good thing is it's still a rich and detailed world with interesting characters that embraces you and want to spend more time in I really wanted to like this game and I was keen about it, until i got through. I am sadly disappointed and I know this is a very subjective estimate. It may be a very well made game for the mediocre shooter crowd, but it's a letdown for rpg players. Good thing is it's still a rich and detailed world with interesting characters that embraces you and want to spend more time in it. I also still enjoy the conversation system thanks to the dialog. The soundtrack is still inviting and the graphics are solid peppered with some formidable compositions. What's told to be happened in the galaxy between the two titles is acceptable to me. Now to criticism. First of all the story: In ME1 I had the feeling I was closing in on Saren and to uncover his worked out plan and for whom he is working. Although Saren was the personalized evil, even he had shades of gray, an assistant, an army, the mysterious boss and the mentioned plan, the perfect antagonist for creating suspense. Mass Effect 2 lacks it all! The only great enemy is an army of stupid cannon fodder which, in the end you discover, doesn't even seem to have a great plan for galaxy domination. There are 3 more very similar mercenary gangs for variety. The second Mass Effect is all about recruiting the league of extraordinary gentlemen. That's the plot and there's barely more to it. Throwing a handful of badass people against an army directed by superbeings only figures in the mass effect universe. The end is just ridiculous! Beside the 3 or 4 missions that correlate to the threatened galaxy plot the whole game feels like a sidequest. Whilst in the first ME some of the secondary missions still offered some dialog and decisions, or somebody to save or to tackle to create not only mini tasks, but mini INTERACTIVE stories, ME2's sidequests mainly exist to shoot stuff, since everything already happened and you're just the cleanup crew. But thanks there is no MAKO involved! As for gameplay: The game got stripped off of most RPG elements except the dialog system. The skill bars were already a weak point in the first installment of the series. Instead of improving the inconvenient inventory of ME1 they simply got rid of it entirely. There's almost nothing to buy in the stores and since you can't loot any equipment there's not even an option to sell anything. Where you could customize your gear for every teammate in ME1 if I'm not mistaken, you have only universal upgrades and few armor parts only to be used by Shepard in ME2. I liked playing around with different setups for different situations in the first title. Now it's lock and load and you're ready to go. I don't know what to make of your allies yet, most seem to have quite similar equipment and abilities. So Bioware upgraded the shooter part of the game and got rid of the apparently unnecessary part of tense storyline and rpg gameplay in order to get the hype to the modest, but large number of shooter players. But thankfully they eliminated other flaws on their way. 6/10 for immersive gameworld, enjoyable dialog and the nice try.… Expand
  71. kram789
    Oct 16, 2010
    6
    Barely enjoyable. I did not play ME1 and I bought ME2 through Steam on-line. Those two conditions probably did me in as I have never gotten comfortable with the combat interface. I am ok with guns. They are simple and work like you think they would. The special talents always seem to go awry. When they work they are great, but its luck. Maybe if I had the game manual it would makeBarely enjoyable. I did not play ME1 and I bought ME2 through Steam on-line. Those two conditions probably did me in as I have never gotten comfortable with the combat interface. I am ok with guns. They are simple and work like you think they would. The special talents always seem to go awry. When they work they are great, but its luck. Maybe if I had the game manual it would make more sense. I have played it for hours, but I am not even interested in finishing it.… Expand
  72. Orctownorc
    Oct 4, 2012
    6
    Mass Effect 2 is stunning space opera and a stunningly mediocre game. It boasts some of the best NPCs and voice acting ever seen in gaming. Then it sticks the 'actors' in the most constricted spaces imaginable, playing about the most asinine 'campaign' ever made. You have beautifully conceived characters like Jack, trapped on a tiny space ship where nothing happens, playing a minigame toMass Effect 2 is stunning space opera and a stunningly mediocre game. It boasts some of the best NPCs and voice acting ever seen in gaming. Then it sticks the 'actors' in the most constricted spaces imaginable, playing about the most asinine 'campaign' ever made. You have beautifully conceived characters like Jack, trapped on a tiny space ship where nothing happens, playing a minigame to 'travel the galaxy' which means running around to encounters on tiny little maps that are supposed to represent 'planets. The parts of the game that are good are really great, but the total experience is good cinema in a BAD game. If they keep the cionema and get around to building proper cities and planets one day this franchise might become AWESOME. Cross your fingers and PRAY.… Expand
  73. Rilke
    Feb 1, 2010
    7
    Mass Effect 2 deserves quite a bit of the acclaim it
  74. MarcusG
    Feb 10, 2010
    6
    If you let yourself get involved in the story and actually take the time to complete ALL (both sides- all character interactions) the quests from ME1 and ME2, it's a wonderful experience. Some of the best written dialogue and voice acting ever done in a video game. Being with the Marines, I can relate to the terminology, mission and posistion of authority, so maybe I'm biased. If you let yourself get involved in the story and actually take the time to complete ALL (both sides- all character interactions) the quests from ME1 and ME2, it's a wonderful experience. Some of the best written dialogue and voice acting ever done in a video game. Being with the Marines, I can relate to the terminology, mission and posistion of authority, so maybe I'm biased. The choices are very ambiguous, if you're playing renegade it's easier, but paragon has some *really* difficult decisions. I found myself saving and re-loading a lot to figure out what I wanted to do. The game makes you care what you say or do. I laughed, got angry, got pumped and almost busted a tear or two. It's that good. Voiced codex entries were excellent. I liked to eat my dinner as I listened to them, and found myself listening to them after I was finished! You have to let yourself become invested in the universe and the inclusion of ME1 save data is an AWESOME idea to accomplish this. Way to reward gamers Bioware! All this praise, why a six? Let's face it, no real gamer reads 10 rating reviews with out saying "yeah, right". I honestly skip most of them (I read them if they are particularly long) The first thing I look for are red and yellow reviews. Then I check for believability with proppor speeling and right grammar use. I throw those lacking out the window and focus on dedicated, thought out reviews. Again, why this game is a six. All the points people have brought up before. No inventory! No Mako! (come on, blasting stuff in that wobbly difficult to control wreck and roving around a planet was fun) Very small towns and levels (which can be a good thing sometimes), however I miss the sprawling landscape of ME1. I liked getting totally lost at first and then feeling like a local by the end of the game. Liara- gone. Why? She was like the Lady Heather from CSI of ME1. Extremely linear missions (which kept the plot moving though). Just no much freedom in the game at all, yeah you can roam around the galaxy and scan planets, but that's it. Some glitches that caused reloads. Abilities- not all that useful. I went the entire game, save the last few missions without using a single one. Minigames- as many have said, repetitive and boring, distracts from gameplay and adds no significant content. Running around in the mako, blowing stuff up, bailing out to mark the resources, or find dead salarians, or just having to scale massive hills/mountains was time consuming but at least engaging. Not to mention not knowing if a maw was about to ruin your day. There is just not as much wonder and mystery as ME1. Krogan loyalty mission/writing totally sweet by the way. Excellent storytelling. No XP for killing enemies. No stats! How do I know which weapon is better? You figure it out according to your tastes, but still, the "Wow, now I'm more awesoem" factor of picking up a sweet weapon/armor/item ala Diablo is not here, at all. the nuke weapon was awesome though, nothing like seeing the last boss almost die in one hit....sigh. Last boss- awesome graphics and plot relevation, but hasn't that been done before in some very popular movies from the 80's/90's? Probably on purpose. Also, very repetitive gunplay. Hide, shoot, move forward, hide, shoot. It was like that in every map. COD: MW, that's gunplay done right. I hate FPS'ers and I loved that game. The only thing keeping me moving forward was the story. Speaking of, I want my old crew back- playable. Not that I'm not just as attached to my new crew. Please don't do that with ME3. Give us a few choices from ME1 and 2 to pick from at least. Depending on who is still alive, of course. Jack must return. Best written/acted character ... yeah. Ever. Illusive man = smoking man from X-files. So obvious I think it may have been on purpose. Yes, the graphics are excellent, for the most part (still some glitches in texturing), soundtrack is still outstanding, and the story is still amazing. Overall, gameplay wise, it just feels rushed and that a lot more design went into ME1. If you haven't played ME1, what are you waiting for. If you have, expect massive changes, maybe some disappointments in ME2, if you liked the story from ME1 then it is definitely worth picking up and you won't be disappointed overall. On it's own, the story only carries it so far and I would not recommend purchasing without having played ME1.… Expand
  75. JohnG
    Apr 12, 2010
    6
    Take away the Gear of War type fighting you have a giant movie that you play through, it has taken the Role Playing genre and turned it upside and gave it to Mass Effect 2. This game does include great action while fighting with good graphics. I'm just waiting for Bethesda to get there hands on this one and make Mass Effect 3. I dont suggest buying something like this unless you want Take away the Gear of War type fighting you have a giant movie that you play through, it has taken the Role Playing genre and turned it upside and gave it to Mass Effect 2. This game does include great action while fighting with good graphics. I'm just waiting for Bethesda to get there hands on this one and make Mass Effect 3. I dont suggest buying something like this unless you want to see how great other RPGs are like The Elder Scrolls, Fallout or Baldar's Gate.… Expand
  76. J.M.
    Apr 7, 2010
    5
    I have been finding more and more of the same thing in this new overrated games, repetition. The weapons are awfully generic. The missions either involve hours of duck and cover clunky repetitive movements or convincing some person to do something through 20 different conversations. Mineral scanning was cool at first but after the first planet of just using some fancy tool to find high I have been finding more and more of the same thing in this new overrated games, repetition. The weapons are awfully generic. The missions either involve hours of duck and cover clunky repetitive movements or convincing some person to do something through 20 different conversations. Mineral scanning was cool at first but after the first planet of just using some fancy tool to find high readings of minerals, it just gets annoying. The game is incredibly one dimensional; either you talk or you do missions. Some of the missions are so pointless I thought it was a joke. Hacking objects took little to no effort and I found myself getting the newest upgrades in no time. The story line was a little interesting in my opinion but as an overall "epic" quest line I was not impressed at all. The level design is so poor that it looks that they used the same boring silver color on every material. The cities and towns I discovered were so bland it was annoying to look at. The environments had so much potential but was sadly a huge disappointment. You find laptops and things here and there to get credits which did not feel like a challenge at all. These objects that gave you goodies like money and upgrades were practically shown to you like a baby. There was no challenge what so ever during the combat. The bosses were all so easy that I thought they were just some mini boss. The RPG elements have very little depth. Every decision made a difference which was, in my mind, was the coolest part about the game. There is a type of karma system; paragon meaning sympathizer and renegade meaning bad ass basically. The system was a little interesting giving you options later based on your level of either paragon or renegade. The game does have skills or "biotic powers" which aid you in combat. The game overall was half of my expectations landing a 5 at best. I would not recommend this game to anyone except the fans of repetitive, one dimensional, clunky, and overrated games… Expand
  77. PalladiumGM
    Mar 11, 2011
    6
    Mass Effect 2 is a very polished and occasionally brilliant RPG. Prepare to be disappointed by a lack of customization, a loss of freedom and the nagging feeling that it's just an on rails shooter in disguise. Also DLC delivery is this game's reason to be and if you don't want to pay through the nose, wait for the eventual 'ultimate' package with everything in it and buy it shortlyMass Effect 2 is a very polished and occasionally brilliant RPG. Prepare to be disappointed by a lack of customization, a loss of freedom and the nagging feeling that it's just an on rails shooter in disguise. Also DLC delivery is this game's reason to be and if you don't want to pay through the nose, wait for the eventual 'ultimate' package with everything in it and buy it shortly before/after ME3 comes out.… Expand
  78. Underscore
    Mar 15, 2011
    7
    Initially, I had fairly low expectations for the game, I'd seen it in passing by GameStop a couple times, heard the name, confused it with Dead Space, Fissure (Or whatever the name was, where you have some nice Spore World-Shaper guns), and any other sci-fi shooter.
    My friend insisted I play it, and I was reluctant, to say the least, but eventually I tried it.
    Great story, great    Initially, I had fairly low expectations for the game, I'd seen it in passing by GameStop a couple times, heard the name, confused it with Dead Space, Fissure (Or whatever the name was, where you have some nice Spore World-Shaper guns), and any other sci-fi shooter.
    My friend insisted I play it, and I was reluctant, to say the least, but eventually I tried it.
    Great story, great characters, great voice acting (Besides male-shep. Weird, seeing as it's a talented voice actor, maybe the director is to blame here?), great graphics (Though I'm not one to end a decision on graphics at all), and a wonderful assortment of Mage/Warrior/Rogue-esque classes brought into the future. The explanations for some of the things in the game are a little wonky, but it's a fantasy game.    … Expand
  79. JimCorbett
    Jan 30, 2014
    7
    Not sure why this game gets showered with praise. On top of the ho-hum gameplay, there is a confusing story packed with filler characters that have no meaning. I didn't give a crap about half of my "team." The start of the game is evolution of your character and the decisions you get to make that transform you. That aspect of the game is very well done. The missions themselves are allNot sure why this game gets showered with praise. On top of the ho-hum gameplay, there is a confusing story packed with filler characters that have no meaning. I didn't give a crap about half of my "team." The start of the game is evolution of your character and the decisions you get to make that transform you. That aspect of the game is very well done. The missions themselves are all basically the same: Go here, kill a bunch of bad guys, interact with this thing at the end, leave, start over again. I'll give the game the benefit of the doubt, though, since I never played it when it was originally released. I wish it was more of a fully fleshed-out game than it is. Oh well, slightly disappointed.… Expand
  80. stern
    Dec 31, 2013
    5
    The whole experience in Mass Effect 2 feels like a high budget hollywoodian action film or as an Assassin's Creed game, specially wen compared with the first iteration, when Bioware obviously had more time to put things together and less expectation to deliver quality. This means that while some parts of it are truly brilliant and amazing, as the characters loyality mission- Tali comes toThe whole experience in Mass Effect 2 feels like a high budget hollywoodian action film or as an Assassin's Creed game, specially wen compared with the first iteration, when Bioware obviously had more time to put things together and less expectation to deliver quality. This means that while some parts of it are truly brilliant and amazing, as the characters loyality mission- Tali comes to mind- in others moment the game appears to be written by complete different people, with complete different ideas of how things should be done, and gosh, how these parts are bland, generic and dumb, feeling more like you are playing the singleplayer campaign of a generic shooter than a scifi rpg.
    And what is said in others reviews isn't exageration or extremism, the game is a hell of an example of why people despise DLCs, with whole parts of the main plot, relevant to the game and the lore- Lair of Shadow Broker for example- being made into DLC. If you don't buy DLCs, several rooms of your ship will be locked for you with no explanation; it's like they, Bioware/EA, want you, they require you to buy those expensive and sometimes silly DLCs in top of an already expensive game to full.
    Another aspect also mentioned in previous reviews is the diminishing rpg experience, it's like they heard some people complaining about the poor inventory management in ME1 and thought "why not cut this altogether? why not throw the inventory away?". This minimalism was behind every aspect of the development: they removed separated cooldowns for powers, they removed heating for weapons and added ammo, they removed free roaming/open spaces, the removed non-combat utility of tech, they removed planet exploration and they pretty much removed non-council races from any relevant plot in the universe.
    This means that (1) every space is a corridor and sometimes you can't even go back, every city you are exploring is disappointing and boring, and an awful lost potential, for example, imagine what could have been to walk and explore the Migrant Fleet, to see how the Quarians lived in this crowded and ever nomadic space... When you go to the Citadel you'll understand what I am saying; (2) playing as an enginner or adept is horrible, even your companions seem tailored for a soldier or vanguard class; (3) they could make the impossible, they made space exploration even more boring and repetitive, now you are left sending probes into planets like a robot, even worse now that discovering gasses and minerals is a necessity; and finally (4) they lost many chances of exploring non-coucil races, for example Ilium would fit perfectly as a volus world, but all you see in the game is an even narrower landscape that you saw in ME1.
    The story is told in a rail-road, forced fashion: you are supposed to believe unplausible things, to accept unidimensional characters such as Jacob (clearly created to cater to what EA believe is a black young audience) and Miranda (clearly a fanservice wankery), and to consider as villains beings who are never openly understood or expressed. Only mid-game things get interesting and by that point you already saw all Blade Runner, Star Wars, Asimov and general scifi inspiration that Bioware immersed itself to create the game. The ending doesn't answer any of ME1 open questions and doesn't even progress the plot, it's just action and action and action.
    All in all, like I said before, there are clearly amazing moments in ME2, such as the quarian zionist congress, I mean, the quarian audience and these parts were written by creative people. It's a game worth pirating.    … Expand
  81. celtqy
    Jun 18, 2013
    7
    Deserves better RPG mechanics and more various gameplay, Bioware is kinda lazy in terms of replacing or repairing parts of its games that didn't get a good response (i.e. vehicle sections). Solid lore and dialogues are not accompanied by interesting world. Except few locations it just feel too empty, all the shooting galleries look the same, not telling anything about the place you're in.
  82. COMThing
    Jan 17, 2014
    5
    An excellent story and dialogue/cinematics to go with sub-par combat, way too basic of an inventory system and the removal of most RPG elements that the first game had. Overall the game is good for 1 playthrough due so you get the story.

    The Good: - Excellent story and dialogue (although sometimes pretty monotonous) - Best missions of the series - Best Citidel (main hub for stores    An excellent story and dialogue/cinematics to go with sub-par combat, way too basic of an inventory system and the removal of most RPG elements that the first game had. Overall the game is good for 1 playthrough due so you get the story.

    The Good:
    - Excellent story and dialogue (although sometimes pretty monotonous)
    - Best missions of the series
    - Best Citidel (main hub for stores and non-combat things) of the series

    The Bad:
    - Least interesting and most basic combat of the series; lacking in weapon choices and customisation, abilities don't seem to have much of an effect most of the time. Not to mention the crappy shotgun with 20 rounds total
    - Lack of almost all the RPG elements that made the first game fun and interesting including the inventory system. If anything this game has less customisation than the first.
    - Bad GUI; clicking through the numerous menus can be a chore and lacks basic keyboard navigation such as ESC to go back or ENTER to accept.    … Expand
  83. Iluvatar21
    Apr 29, 2014
    7
    HOW I RATE: 10-9 score: perfect or near-perfect don't exist; 8 score: one of the best games ever. Top score; 7-6 score: great but not one of the best; 5-below score: serious flaws.
    ===========
    This is exactly what Mass Effect was destined to become. Story, pacing, visuals are top notch sci-fi material but gameplay wise it's just boring: kill this, kill that.
  84. gamesgonewild
    Mar 22, 2014
    7
    I really did enjoy playing this game, and i played it when all three were released ,so i played this knowing i would buy the third game. And whats weird is that because I've now played Mass effect 3, my opinion of the second one has decreased. Why is that....let me tell you

    Mass effect 2 is basically you going around the galaxy in a ship to recruit the best team in the galaxy to stop    I really did enjoy playing this game, and i played it when all three were released ,so i played this knowing i would buy the third game. And whats weird is that because I've now played Mass effect 3, my opinion of the second one has decreased. Why is that....let me tell you

    Mass effect 2 is basically you going around the galaxy in a ship to recruit the best team in the galaxy to stop the bad guys. To do this you need to act like some kind of psychologist and sort out everyone's problems. Now i played lots of side quests so for me i spent 23 hours zipping around helping everyone out. when the time came to face the bad guys the game took me 1 hour to complete. I wasn't so bothered by this because i thought that the third one will pick up where i left off....but it never.

    So while i enjoyed playing the game looking back i feel like i wasted so much time on a game that bears little fruit.

    (see my Mass effect 3 review)

    Overall the game was good, and i really did enjoy it but, and i hate to day this, but the game is kinda pointless.    … Expand
  85. whitepawn
    Jun 27, 2014
    7
    Maybe it's just me, maybe I'm more for Sword & Sorcery than Space Odyssey, but I found this game somewhat boring and repetitive. The story did nothing for me. Oh, Bioware made good efforts with characters and dialogue, but the whole thing felt uninspired. The graphics also felt flat, though I suppose that fits with the whole 'streamlined' space/science thing.

    It's playable but I find    Maybe it's just me, maybe I'm more for Sword & Sorcery than Space Odyssey, but I found this game somewhat boring and repetitive. The story did nothing for me. Oh, Bioware made good efforts with characters and dialogue, but the whole thing felt uninspired. The graphics also felt flat, though I suppose that fits with the whole 'streamlined' space/science thing.

    It's playable but I find myself wanting to jump to the end without finishing the companion quests just to finish it off already.

    Buggy too. I find myself repeatedly resetting to the last save due to getting stuck in midair. I'll round a corner in a city and find myself halfway in the wall with no way to get out. I'll be walking up and down a stairs guardrail, trapped. I'll be floating above a rock just off the path, unable to walk off. You get the point. It happens often enough to be annoying, especially when you haven't saved in a bit.

    The mining for ore bit on endless planets gets really old. If I hear the sound of probe deployment one more time...ugh. The memory match game for circuitry bypass on doors and datapads is VERY old. I wish there was an ingame reward for bypassing the tedium.

    Bioware's character image sliders are very limited, both DAs had much more depth and detail. And the prospect of alien 'woohoo' is cringe-worthy over lol so I skipped that bit.

    No mods to speak of which is a terrible thing.

    Even so, I suppose    … Expand
  86. Lupa999
    May 12, 2015
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. 2 steps forward, 4 steps back right bioware? What I cannot fathom is how this game has earned the title of one of the best pc games ever made. Mass Effect 2 feels much smaller than mass effect 1, which was part of its charm. Mass effect 1 really did make you feel like you were exploring planets and galaxies, hell even an entire universe. Many areas of mass effect 2, while are unique unlike mass effect 1 copy and paste room and hallways, just take away from the game. Remember the HUGE citadel embassies, C-SEC HQ and the Upper and lower wards with the casinos, bars and shops? ALL GONE. Instead you explore some place called the zakera wards on the citadel and there is less things to do and people to talk to than in the first one.That is all you can do in the citadel. The game removes all of the RPG, And I do mean ALL of it apart from a dialogue wheel. Inventory? gone. Meaningful progression? gone. Exploration? Gone. Hacking and looting? I don't even need to say it. This game has fallen into a generic TPS and anyone else who disagrees is mentally challenged or a Fan boy .

    The main story had potential, but is riddled with plot holes. Why did Walter activate the mechs to kill everyone? Why the hell did the reapers want to build a human reaper? both of these and many more are unexplained. Why was the writing this poor? to give the story needless and senseless drama. The collectors were building a human reaper out of humans....why? it makes no sense. Its shocking and interesting and makes no sense. This game is not an rpg. This is a TPS with a dialogue option.    … Expand
  87. AlexG
    Feb 11, 2010
    7
    The storyline is great, acting is second to none and combat is top notch, I love the characters and their loyalty quests, the cerberus dlc is a great way of putting out dlc. However there are minor flaws for the pc version of this game, this is mainly due to the mouse and it's irregular movement, easily seen on the bypasses, add into the effect you have to bypass for different The storyline is great, acting is second to none and combat is top notch, I love the characters and their loyalty quests, the cerberus dlc is a great way of putting out dlc. However there are minor flaws for the pc version of this game, this is mainly due to the mouse and it's irregular movement, easily seen on the bypasses, add into the effect you have to bypass for different missions and upgrades and its a nightmare, I much preferred the simpler "frogger" in Mass Effect 1, this and the fact that objects don't get triggered to use most of the time puts it down to a 7 for me, however I have stuck through and am 34 hours into it.....I do get distracted.… Expand
  88. CommanderShepard
    Feb 2, 2010
    7
    Basically, a complete upgrade from it's predecessor. While it still has its flaws, the positive sides of this gem clearly dominates the bad ones. However, the game is not as perfect as the critics claim it to be. Some of the reviews are clearly way too generous and doesn't take any notice whatsoever of the bigger disappointments when leaving their ratings here. An extremely Basically, a complete upgrade from it's predecessor. While it still has its flaws, the positive sides of this gem clearly dominates the bad ones. However, the game is not as perfect as the critics claim it to be. Some of the reviews are clearly way too generous and doesn't take any notice whatsoever of the bigger disappointments when leaving their ratings here. An extremely well-made game, but not completely on par with games like the Orange Box (every one of them) or Zelda: OOT. Still, it is far beyond worth your money!… Expand
  89. funkymarlon
    Feb 14, 2010
    7
    Me2 is a refined pancake. Looks great, feels okay. But when you play enough of it. You'll find it's infested with mini-games. Combat-to-combat paths are landmined with mini-games. Dialog occationally has a minigame of whack'em. (re)Exploration is there as a minigame. All new mineing is there... minigame. You can buy ME1 for far cheaper and make it look the same by adjusting Me2 is a refined pancake. Looks great, feels okay. But when you play enough of it. You'll find it's infested with mini-games. Combat-to-combat paths are landmined with mini-games. Dialog occationally has a minigame of whack'em. (re)Exploration is there as a minigame. All new mineing is there... minigame. You can buy ME1 for far cheaper and make it look the same by adjusting contrast on you're TV/monitor and play tons of free minigames on you're phone every five minutes. In short, it would be stupid to pay full price for this game as it would be a direct assault on common sense. Signed ME2 CE owner. P.S. Pancakes are not or should not in any legal or other ways be assosiated with Mass Effect or Bioware.… Expand
  90. byF
    Feb 3, 2010
    7
    It's a good game despite a few flaws. It's epic, the story has a drive, locations are beautiful and characters are believable. I'm glad they've got rid of long elevator rides and generic cut-and-paste environments (including riding MAKO while searching planets). The new "scan-a-planet" system is pretty well-done. However, the flaws overweigh: It's a quite short It's a good game despite a few flaws. It's epic, the story has a drive, locations are beautiful and characters are believable. I'm glad they've got rid of long elevator rides and generic cut-and-paste environments (including riding MAKO while searching planets). The new "scan-a-planet" system is pretty well-done. However, the flaws overweigh: It's a quite short for an "RPG". I feel there is a lack of subsidiary quests. I'd like to see ten more at least. Some of them were really great with a quite some invention inside! Unfortunately, some of them were not. All about three kinds of merc gangs or three kinds of mechanoids. I thought the Milky Way in Mass Effect universe was a living, full of challenges and exciting opportunities - especially in Terminus systems! It's sad, but do not except anything like that... The personal terminal is not duly utilized. A lot of people write you, but almost no missions come through. And I think the developers tried to use as much persons from the first game as they could. I don't recall any new interesting (!) non-recruitable character except Illusive man which I'd like to met in ME3. I feel inconsistent about gameplay. It's more fluid than in the first one, but it's a way too much console-like. If I wanted to play console game, I'd buy a console. Nevertheless, if there were more complex content I would -maybe- put up with that.… Expand
  91. Morring
    Apr 7, 2013
    7
    Good game, with a few flaws. Graphics and sound are quite good, and while you may have less sidequests than ME1 if you're not interested in the DLCs at least this time you won't be exploring the same three maps with a few crates in a different position. The plot offers you a limited choice, to be fair most of the time you will just have different ways to get to the same result, but theGood game, with a few flaws. Graphics and sound are quite good, and while you may have less sidequests than ME1 if you're not interested in the DLCs at least this time you won't be exploring the same three maps with a few crates in a different position. The plot offers you a limited choice, to be fair most of the time you will just have different ways to get to the same result, but the characters, voice acting and the one plot you have are actually very enjoyable. If this approach is something you don't like then consider buying something else, like The Witcher 2, before ME2. The inventory system is quite different from ME, you will only have a few versions of each weapon and some upgrades, this again is a matter of taste. ME had a clunky, console friendly inventory which I don't mind at all forgetting, the old grid based diablo and nwn system would have been a better choice than what you had in ME so I can't see any reason to complain, while some people seem to miss it. Combat manages to be fun for the whole game. Based on your class you will have different ways to hack trough you enemy's defenses and go for the kill, by sheer firepower or trough one of the many abilities, freezing and shattering them with an headshot or just push them up above or down into a pit with your biotic powers. The final boss is probably the easiest battle in the whole game toh. You can find something better in the "Lair of the shadow broker" dlc.

    Some very annoying flaws: you're going to find your character slide up on a few obstacles without any way to get back down. This only happens on a few obstacles, but it is quite frustrating having to reload your game for a bug like this. Another common problem is the game crashing at some points when you try to change the weapons equipped on your characters. If you bough some weapon dlc this adds some extra irony.

    All in all, for me it felt like playing a not too recent final fantasy game, with less grinding, good graphics and a fighting system that isn't annoying. It may not be your cup of coffee, but if it is then you're going to love this game.    … Expand
  92. suneater
    Dec 13, 2012
    7
    Stripped of RPG elements, this is a disappointing sequel given the premise that was built in the original. It seems the popular thing to do nowadays is turn every franchise into Gears of War or Call of Duty because that's what Bioware did with this game; Mass Effect 2 is effectively Gears of War with a chat wheel. On it's own it would've been an excellent spin-off but calling this an RPGStripped of RPG elements, this is a disappointing sequel given the premise that was built in the original. It seems the popular thing to do nowadays is turn every franchise into Gears of War or Call of Duty because that's what Bioware did with this game; Mass Effect 2 is effectively Gears of War with a chat wheel. On it's own it would've been an excellent spin-off but calling this an RPG shows what a sad state of affairs the game industry is in. If you played the first you can import your character and your actions from the previous game do have some weight but this also presents the problem of killing the replay value. This is a good squad-based third person shooter but it's no RPG.… Expand
  93. xTobyMc
    Feb 7, 2015
    7
    After seeing the game with such a high user review I went into the game with high expectations. Unfortunately however I felt Mass Effect 1 was more enjoyable and this was more of a 'I just want to cut to the chase and see the ending' type game. The first 7 hours or so were quite tedious as you go around finding new crew members and then carrying out their tasks. It wasn't until the lastAfter seeing the game with such a high user review I went into the game with high expectations. Unfortunately however I felt Mass Effect 1 was more enjoyable and this was more of a 'I just want to cut to the chase and see the ending' type game. The first 7 hours or so were quite tedious as you go around finding new crew members and then carrying out their tasks. It wasn't until the last few missions that I felt the game started to shine as the tasks became evermore difficult, action packed, and full of decisions that actually made you take a moment to think. Overall the game wasn't bad, it just wasn't anything incredible. I look forward to playing Mass Effect 3 next though.… Expand
  94. uberdoku
    Jan 11, 2015
    6
    Without a doubt, the gameplay is excellent, and much better than ME1. Unfortunately though, that's about the extent of the game. It's like the first-person equivalent of the recent Final Fantasy games: all gameplay, really weak storyline. At least in the first game, the storyline was fresh and interesting. Now it's old, and so is the entire style. I really hoped for something compellingWithout a doubt, the gameplay is excellent, and much better than ME1. Unfortunately though, that's about the extent of the game. It's like the first-person equivalent of the recent Final Fantasy games: all gameplay, really weak storyline. At least in the first game, the storyline was fresh and interesting. Now it's old, and so is the entire style. I really hoped for something compelling from this game, but the only thing that's driving me to beat it, is to beat it. The characters' interaction and rapport with Shepherd all seems contrived and "forced", extracting any sense of fluidity. I'd also like to see less repetition within the NPC dialogue. Overall, I want to like the game, and sometimes I do, but way too inconsistently. If it was rated 80, I could cope with that, but this is way overrated; a rating of 94 is completely unwarranted.… Expand
  95. rscl
    Jan 1, 2015
    6
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. A great continuation of Mass Effect series which clearly tries to fix the flaws of its predecessor. It greatly improved combat and AI, but somehow manages to do it at the cost of meaningful gameplay.
    For me, this game was focused on the combat aspects rather than story. As a third person shooter, it was a fun experience. Of course, if you realize how to get rid of the mouse acceleration/dampening.

    It has loads of abilities, max level talents and insane amount of followers. But the main story is forced, and you end up spending most of the time forcefully collecting followers and helping them out with unrelated personal quests, in addition to side quests that's already available.

    I would definitively recommend the game. Mainly because it contains enough story plot that shouldn't be missed before ME3. The follower stories are negligible but few matter to the main story. With the good combat elements and customization - it's definitively worth playing, but also very hyped imho.    … Expand
  96. Ekonomistas
    Jul 29, 2014
    6
    I was excited to try play ME2 for my first time after playing ME1 which as I remember left me with good feeling and an interesting story I uncovered and was left wondering how it should unfold in later ME series. I don't remember the exact year when I tried ME2 first time nor do I remember my first impression of that game. But it should have been not long after its release on PC. I don'tI was excited to try play ME2 for my first time after playing ME1 which as I remember left me with good feeling and an interesting story I uncovered and was left wondering how it should unfold in later ME series. I don't remember the exact year when I tried ME2 first time nor do I remember my first impression of that game. But it should have been not long after its release on PC. I don't remember much from that time, but I know that I didn't finish the game that time. So I remember trying to play it for second time after some time, again failing to finish. Only that time I got bored of doing side quests, while building up my team, so I lost the main story line. And now in 2014 year summer I heard that ME 4 is coming up so I said to myself: "I Need to finish ME2, in order to try ME3 and I could try ME4 after it launches". So I started again journey to ME2 universe. I had the time I pushed myself harder and further to the story to other side quests, I even lower difficulty because fights took way too long in order to progress in story. And still I failed, lost interest, I understood that ME2 has an interesting story, interesting characters, locations but fights are boring and tedious, game play is very linear. I could say that its like interactive movie. You are annoyed by boring fights but are attracted by interactive cut scenes and big interesting story.

    From FPS game I wanted more player movement freedom
    From RPG game I wanted more character development, more inventory management, items.
    From TBS game I wanted more deeper strategy, resource management    … Expand
  97. gyamtso
    Sep 21, 2014
    6
    I've played Mass Effect I enough to say that the sequence isn't worth the grandiosity of its predecessor.

    The sequence has its qualities and I really want to write a fair review here. The graphics are nice, the soundtrack its still good, the combat is more action based than the first, but the plot and the dialogues suffered a great loss. This first big let down is the plot and the    I've played Mass Effect I enough to say that the sequence isn't worth the grandiosity of its predecessor.

    The sequence has its qualities and I really want to write a fair review here.

    The graphics are nice, the soundtrack its still good, the combat is more action based than the first, but the plot and the dialogues suffered a great loss.

    This first big let down is the plot and the sensation that the game is pretending that I can change things when, really, it's just a soap-opera that wants to deceive people to get their audience.

    It just sucks. All the choices in the first game, the difficulties because of the *right* path, turned into ashes. It just doesn't matter. If you chose the "A" path, they put some different dialogues, if you chose the "B" path, they change a bit in one or two scenes to pretend that they aren't lazy to make something worth.

    The game was a complete let down for me. Luckily, it didn't spoiled my experience on the first game, but I don't want to play mass effect II for some time. On other side, I'm going to play the first again, for the sixth time.    … Expand
  98. dabyd1304
    Jun 15, 2020
    6
    El principal problema de secuela es que su trama es totalmente innecesaria, no aporta nada.

    El juego sigue teniendo esa riqueza en la creación de su mundo y sus matices. Pero quizá estos se muestran con misiones secundarias obligatorias para avanzar en la historia. Y solo por esta decisión de diseño aberrante, no puedo tomarmelo en serio. Aun así, 100% aconsejable si uno es fan del    El principal problema de secuela es que su trama es totalmente innecesaria, no aporta nada.

    El juego sigue teniendo esa riqueza en la creación de su mundo y sus matices. Pero quizá estos se muestran con misiones secundarias obligatorias para avanzar en la historia. Y solo por esta decisión de diseño aberrante, no puedo tomarmelo en serio.

    Aun así, 100% aconsejable si uno es fan del original, como es mi caso.    … Expand
  99. Demon2017
    Jun 10, 2022
    6
    Хороший сюжет, прикольные напарники, замечательное кинцо, ужасный геймплей и диалоговая система.
  100. 7ShadesOfEffort
    Apr 18, 2017
    7
    This game was a great surprise for me after a huge disappointment of Mass Effect 1. I wasn't expecting anything good from BioWare after they proven that they've entirely became EA's slave and console fodder provider instead of awesome RPG developer. But Mass Effect 2 is a surprisingly decent game.
    Not so grindy side quests (globes probing is still a grind however), not so trashy action    This game was a great surprise for me after a huge disappointment of Mass Effect 1. I wasn't expecting anything good from BioWare after they proven that they've entirely became EA's slave and console fodder provider instead of awesome RPG developer. But Mass Effect 2 is a surprisingly decent game.
    Not so grindy side quests (globes probing is still a grind however), not so trashy action (thanks for allowing my biotic adept to use something besides pistol) and greatly simplified equipment management made it much less painful to play. It still has some of fundamental issues that just can't allow a game like this to be a truly entertaining masterpiece, but developers also handled some of these problems I wasn't even hoping to see fixed. It even offers you a self-sufficient story that doesn't only feeds you with expectations.
    Finally, the most important improvement of all is that you can just end your story here. Don't waste your time on side quests, ignore your whining teammates, just run through the game and enjoy a bittersweet ending which is billions time better than RGB abomination of Mass Effect 3. That rare occasion when your actions have real consequences. Trust EA and their slaves and witness the trilogy of grandiose disappointment. Ignore their lies and enjoy a pretty decent dilogy. How ironic.

    5 out of 7: nice.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best PC Game of 2010
3
#3 Most Discussed PC Game of 2010
4
#4 Most Shared PC Game of 2010

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
94

Universal acclaim - based on 55 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 54 out of 55
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 55
  3. Negative: 0 out of 55
  1. Vandal
    96
    Mass Effect 2 resumes with pride the path opened by the first game. This sequel is a lesson of how things should be made.
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  2. AtomicGamer
    96
    Mass Effect 2 delivers a story that's deeper than what many novelists are capable of, and its action is better than what most Hollywood directors are creating nowadays. It's an addictive, engrossing experience that many gamers will replay over and over while they hold their breath waiting for the third game.
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  3. PC Games
    88
    A brilliant mix of shooter and role-playing, filled with great characters, excellent design, lots of action and clever dialogue. It's a shame though that Bioware did not improve the inventory and skill system of the first game, but actually reduced it even more. I really wished there were more customization options, more ways to develop and gear up my characters. But all these are merely small points of criticism, since there is so much to feel and experience in this game. Mass Effect 2 is a thrilling, emotional ride and ultimately every bit as good as its predecessor.
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