Mass Effect

A month after I started this blog, we have finally reached the eponymous first game of the Mass Effect series.  When I play most games, I usually will play through, beat it, and I'm done.  There are very few that I jump back into, much less finish.  The game takes roughly 30-40 hours to complete, and this will be my fourth play-through of the game.  I foresee at least one more in my future, so that should tell how much I enjoy it.  The only other games I have completed multiple times are Fallout, Fallout 3, and the Half Life games.

Paragon

The great thing about Mass Effect is that it has so much to uncover.  While it has a more linear structure than open world games like the Fallout series, the choices you make through conversation and decisions within the missions are numerous.  With every play-through I have uncovered more and more new things, and I've only ever played along the Paragon lines!

To help that last sentence make more sense, Mass Effect has a morality system built into it.  On its surface, it is a sci-fi roleplaying action game.  However, as you make your way through the game, you are constantly tasked with decisions.  Nearly every dialog decision - and some mission choices - alter your in-game moral compass.  If you likened it to Star Wars, Paragon represents the light side, while Renegade represents the dark side.

Renegade

Only, it really isn't so clear cut as that even.  There are some decisions as a Paragon that can seem more self-righteous and haughty, and some Renegade choices more selfless (though they probably break some sort of law).  The game's handling of these moral choices give it a richness and depth you would hard-pressed to find elsewhere.

On a technical level, the game looks beautiful, though, by this point, slightly dated.  Drawing from the heyday of science fiction in the 70s and 80s, BioWare gave the setting and the characters a great aesthetic.  From the Presidium on the Citadel to the bridge of the Normandy, to the ruins on Feros, the game's environment draws you into a world as rich and detailed as any Tolkien created (cue Tolkien fan rage).

Combat is handled on a real-time basis, meaning you are actively engaged in the fight.  Previous BioWare games, such as Knight of the Old Republic, typically involved a click-and-go function, but with Mass Effect, you determine every step, every gunshot, every biotic ability your character makes.  All this from a 3rd-person, over-the-shoulder perspective.

In-game screenshot

You even get to drive your own vehicle as you explore planets and conduct missions.  Here's a video that shows some of the gameplay.  Start at 4:20 if you want to skip all the driving:

All right, that's it for today.  Next Monday, we'll dive into the story of Commander Shepard and his fight to save the galaxy.

From the Mass Effect Codex, Pt. 3

Here we have our last set of entries in preparation for the first post that deals with the first Mass Effect game. More entries will be posted as we go through the game itself. So sit back, grab some coffee or tea, and read away.

As always, the [*] indicates items that will be covered in a future Codex entry.

Revelation

Mass Effect: Revelation, written by Drew Karpyshyn, is the first novel in the Mass Effect universe and a darn good one at that.  Set several decades before the events of the first game, it tells the story of David Anderson - Commander Shepherd's eventual mentor and chief promoter - and his first encounter with Saren, the turian spectre.

Red Sand

So. I am now a dad.  It's still hard to believe actually.  Oh, and if you were paying attention, I missed posting anything on Monday due to my aforementioned graduation into dad-hood. My apologies. With today's post, we should get to our regularly scheduled programming.

I don't want to leave you empty-handed, so I give you a fan-created short film that depicts humanity's first encounter with alien technology...Mass Effect: Red Sand.  It stars the voice actor for the male version of Commander Shepherd, Mark Meer.  This isn't considered canon, as far as I know, but still an impressive feat to be sure.

Enjoy.

See you on Monday!

From the Mass Effect Codex, Pt. 2

We've got quite a list of entries this time. Revelation pulls in many different aspects of the Mass Effect universe. I've tried to keep to those subjects that play a major role in the story. Plus, I can't use too many up at one time, right?

As last time, the [*] indicates items that will be covered in a future Codex entry.

Evolution

In the chronology of the Mass Effect universe, our first piece of fiction is the tie-in graphic novel, Mass Effect: Evolution, written by one the Mass Effect series' lead writers, Mac Walters, scripted by John Jackson Miller with art by Omar Francia.  It is interesting to note that it was published nearly four years after the first game.

By Chronology		By Publication Date
Title	Publication Date	Title	Publication Date
Evolution	9/21/2011	Revelation	5/1/2007
Revelation	5/1/2007	Mass Effect	11/16/2007
Mass Effect	11/16/2007	Ascension	7/29/2008
Incursion	6/21/2010	Galaxy	6/22/2009
Redemption	1/6/2010	Redemption	1/6/2010
Ascension	7/29/2008	Mass Effect 2	1/26/2010
Galaxy	6/22/2009	Incursion	6/21/2010
Paragon Lost	4/7/2011	Inquisition	6/21/2010
Mass Effect 2	1/26/2010	Retribution	7/27/2010
Retribution	7/27/2010	Paragon Lost	4/7/2011
Inquisition	6/21/2010	Conviction	7/26/2011
Deception	1/31/2012	Evolution	9/21/2011
Conviction	7/26/2011	Invasion	11/19/2011
Invasion	11/19/2011	Deception	1/31/2012
Infiltrator	3/6/2012	Infiltrator	3/6/2012
Homeworlds	4/25/2012	Homeworlds	4/25/2012
Mass Effect 3	11/18/2012	Mass Effect 3	11/18/2012

Evolution details a key event in the history of a very important figure within the Mass Effect series: the Illusive Man.

As I mentioned in my first post, there will be spoilers in this blog post.