I read something positive about mass effect so I`d figure I`d pirate (love pirating products ms earns money from) mass effect 1 and 2.

I started to play #1(on PC) and here`s my first impressions:

 

1. Fantastic title screen music. Perfect for a space game.

2. Creating character is a tad better than oblivion iv(dunno why I compare to that game), but characters still look crappy. Need a mod perhaps.

3. I puked when I saw and heard joker. Why can`t western developers create life-like computer characters. Even when the graphics are amazing they look like dolls. And why open the game with a filthy clichè character like him?

4. The aiming in combat is unaccurate. The strategy is non-existent. Trying to command troops is hopeless. Equipment system works great.

5. Most important part is the rpg elements and they are just bla bla bla. Let me explain: If you can skip parts or all talking, why add so much talking? Surely no-one is playing this game for the action elements. The story so far seems it`s taken right out of Babylon 5 series. Aliens poor designed. No realism in a far future where aliens co-exist with humans. No depth. I`m only 4 hours into the game, but still I`m bored with the conversation and skip a lot unless it`s the main story.

Worst moment: When I became a spectre and the hollywood music roared in the backround.

6. Level design is poor. Example: the first city you`re in is lifeless and hard to navigate in.

 

These are my first impressions. I might have another go, but the will to continue is low so far.

Maybe mass effect 2 is better, but I hate to play a second part of a game when the first is not finished.

I wanted to play this game because I expected it to be a a+ game and read so much positive in us reviews.

So far I`m massively dissapointed.

 

Thanks for reading.

 

 

Well, Mass Effect is basically a celebration of 80's scifi-cliches (and Bioware's own), so it's not exactly surprising that and most of the characters and the story aren't exactly anything new - starting from Shepard himself, who is a textbook example of a Mary Sue if you ever saw one (then again, he's not alone).

And while I'm certainly no fan of Mass Effect, I still say you should probably just set the difficulty way down and do a quick runthru of the main plot. It's easily the best part of the game, and you won't have to deal with the broken and boring gameplay as much since you can complete the main storyline in about 15 hours.

Oh, and:

As a B5 fan, I'm insulted.

Mise said: Well, Mass Effect is basically a celebration of 80's scifi-cliches (and Bioware's own), so it's not exactly surprising that and most of the characters and the story aren't exactly anything new - starting from Shepard himself, who is a textbook example of a Mary Sue if you ever saw one (then again, he's not alone). And while I'm certainly no fan of Mass Effect, I still say you should probably just set the difficulty way down and do a quick runthru of the main plot. It's easily the best part of the game, and you won't have to deal with the broken and boring gameplay as much since you can complete the main storyline in about 15 hours. Oh, and: The story so far seems it`s taken right out of Babylon 5 series As a B5 fan, I'm insulted.

A celebration of 80`s with 00`s cliches.

Im playing on normal and it`s too easy at this point in the game. I don`t want to rush through games. I want to remember them.

What`s wrong with Babylon 5?

Citan said: 1. Fantastic title screen music. Perfect for a space game. 2. Creating character is a tad better than oblivion iv(dunno why I compare to that game), but characters still look crappy. Need a mod perhaps. 3. I puked when I saw and heard joker. Why can`t western developers create life-like computer characters. Even when the graphics are amazing they look like dolls. And why open the game with a filthy clichè character like him? 4. The aiming in combat is unaccurate. The strategy is non-existent. Trying to command troops is hopeless. Equipment system works great. 5. Most important part is the rpg elements and they are just bla bla bla. Let me explain: If you can skip parts or all talking, why add so much talking? Surely no-one is playing this game for the action elements. The story so far seems it`s taken right out of Babylon 5 series. Aliens poor designed. No realism in a far future where aliens co-exist with humans. No depth. I`m only 4 hours into the game, but still I`m bored with the conversation and skip a lot unless it`s the main story. 6. Level design is poor. Example: the first city you`re in is lifeless and hard to navigate in.

2.  Mass Effect won't have real mods.  It's not made for it.

3.  Joker is fine.

4.  You need to put skill points into the weapon skills to make the cursor smaller and your aim better.

5.  The aliens are designed pretty well.  I especially like the Krogan, the Quarians, and the Elkor.  If you're skipping the conversation then it means you're not into RPGs.  Heck, I was astounded by the amount of detail they put into the conversation of the Normandy's chief engineer.

6.  Level design is awful.  It's like they have 3-4 area floor plans and reuse them for every planet.

I'm 19 hours in and finally starting to run out of sidequests and worlds to complete.

@ Citan

Agreed, apart from all the technical issues this really surprised me. The marketing and many reviews implied well done emotional story telling. But I only saw puppet-like scenes. Imagine games like Heavy Rain, Heavenly Sword or Uncharted with lifeless facial expressions with monotoon voices combined with poor acting. Those are western examples though, so that's not the issue.

My most anticipated games are God of War 3 and The Last Guardian, I am sure they will do much better in this regard. Hopefully Mass Effect 2 is a vast improvement over the original.

Mass Effect 1 is awesome

At least someone else noticed the massive design flaws with the re-used area layouts.

When it released, I thought it was the greatest thing, ever. I never gave it a second playthrough because my inventory was maxed out and it got frustrating, throwing everything away after every battle.

I LOVED the grainy graphics, the characters, and the story. I also liked the powers, abilities, and skills that came with leveling up. There was a choice made near the end that made it into my list of "Top 10 Most Powerful Gaming Moments" from 2008. Even though I got ME 2 on Friday, I may go ahead and give ME 1 another go through. It had some technical issues, but it's one of this gen's best games!! Sorry it wasn't your cup of tea, OP.

Citan said: I read something positive about mass effect so I`d figure I`d pirate (love pirating products ms earns money from) mass effect 1 and 2.

I stopped reading here.

Citan said:   I read something positive about mass effect so I`d figure I`d pirate (love pirating products ms earns money from) mass effect 1 and 2. I started to play #1(on PC) and here`s my first impressions:   1. Fantastic title screen music. Perfect for a space game. 2. Creating character is a tad better than oblivion iv(dunno why I compare to that game), but characters still look crappy. Need a mod perhaps. 3. I puked when I saw and heard joker. Why can`t western developers create life-like computer characters. Even when the graphics are amazing they look like dolls. And why open the game with a filthy clichè character like him? 4. The aiming in combat is unaccurate. The strategy is non-existent. Trying to command troops is hopeless. Equipment system works great. 5. Most important part is the rpg elements and they are just bla bla bla. Let me explain: If you can skip parts or all talking, why add so much talking? Surely no-one is playing this game for the action elements. The story so far seems it`s taken right out of Babylon 5 series. Aliens poor designed. No realism in a far future where aliens co-exist with humans. No depth. I`m only 4 hours into the game, but still I`m bored with the conversation and skip a lot unless it`s the main story. Worst moment: When I became a spectre and the hollywood music roared in the backround. 6. Level design is poor. Example: the first city you`re in is lifeless and hard to navigate in.   These are my first impressions. I might have another go, but the will to continue is low so far. Maybe mass effect 2 is better, but I hate to play a second part of a game when the first is not finished. I wanted to play this game because I expected it to be a a+ game and read so much positive in us reviews. So far I`m massively dissapointed.   Thanks for reading.

I wish you puked on your PC so you won;t be able to play your pirated copies of these two marvelous games.

Anyway, you seem to ignore MASSIVE elements of the games' structure (why so much talking? it is a Bioware RPG for god's sake, Why inaccurate shooting? the PC rolls the dices on the background. R-P-G) so, I don;t think anyone should take this seriously...

Either way, trying to judge such a diverse game (and not only judge, but actually upload these poor thoughts on the internet) by playing 4 hours, (i assume, you hardly explored the Citadel), it is a poor choise by itself.

CYa!