Hay ... as most of you know, I got a copy of Mass Effect last week for review. I have unlocked a couple achievements and have played the game for roughly 3 hours (over the course of a few days). Here are my impressions thus far:

1. The worlds are massive. The only real gripe I have as far as the game goes is the load times. Yes ... you will find yourself walking around, hitting a certain point and it says 'Loading ...' It can be annoying at times. However, due to the fact all of this is  crammed on just one disk, I'll cut Bioware some slack.

2. The graphics are awesome. I was in awe gazing at the Citadel from the space dock. The view is beautiful. The  graphics are on par, if  not better than Gears of War.

3. The dialogue is rather smooth. It completely flows and the voice acting is sweet. However, some of the NPCs say the same 3-4 phrases over and over again, which kind of sucks. Still, it's like playing the Sims with BFGs ... and hot aliens.

4. If you loved KOTR, you'll fall head over heels for Mass Effect.

Here's my update post for the folks that know all of the above already:

I'm going into my 3rd hour of play - I have been selected to become a Spectre (sweetness) and the plot thickens - I am macking to this space marine I saved on Eden Prime, but she's all business. However, a very strange thing happened while I played this time. I booted the game two times in a row and ... it gave me a disc read error. Hmmm ... so I did some thinking (I have Live Gold) and I disconnected the RJ45 cable, booted again and it played fine. That leads me to believe if you have Live and an early copy of Mass Effect, you CAN'T play before the street date. That kinda sucks, but ...

Otherwise, I'm still impressed - once you start playing, you will find yourself really into it. I do have one gripe - some of the load times suck. I really think this title would have benefitted from multiple disks - or being on an HD DVD for other galaxies and such.

Still, an awesome, bang-up job thus far ...

so pretty much the only downside is the long loading times?

sounds really nice

Man im so glad. Ive been pumped for this game for so long, and i finally pre-ordered it today. That a game this huge can be put on a single DVD9 says a lot about what good compression can do. When your talking about good developers (and obviously games without too much FMV and CGI), I dont see why most games are going to need more than two DVD's towards the end of this generation, or more than a single-sided Blu-Ray on PS3.

sounds nice only probably loading but still sounds nice and glad to hear its graphics being better then gears,its about time a game on 360 beat it in the graohics department

@ Neos

Yeah, that's it. I have picked up some skill upgrades after I became a Specter, including intimidation. I haven't used it yet, but I can't wait ...

And I think this is the first game where I have my own ship. It's pretty sweet to be able to run around the decks (it's not very big) and know you are in command. I am trying to find where the crew sleeps. That should be rather interesting.

I'm looking forward to playing it again this weekend. I'll have the full review by Monday afternoon.

I agree with the compression aspect. The only way I'd accept multiple disks would be for other galaxies or planets that you don't access often.

But ... gameplay is solid. I was so-so on KOTR, but this game has made me change my mind. The scenes where you are talking have sweet graphics. I have seen screens online that compare it to Crysis - and trust me, those things are dead on. Mind you, that's not typical gameplay - those scenes are from shots where characters are talking.

There are some really interesting situations in the game - I am wondering if they will lead to some kind of problem later. At the Citadel, you get hounded by a reporter, Ebony Wong. You are also asked for your autograph from this guy - and I went ahead and signed it. I know the reporter is sniffing for a story but I am being tight lipped to her.

I tell you - I love games with relationships and I haven't seen lesbian alien sex, but I could see easily how it could happen. I know in the Sims, I had like 5-6 women at the same time (one saw me kissing another Sim - in front of her - and they had a catfight). I want to see if I can have 4-5 across the galaxy. Definitely wanna holla at the space marine Willams.

@ Endurance

I am going to load up GOW for a few minutes just to make sure my mind's not playing tricks on me. I like the graphics in Mass Effect. The graphics, the sounds, the gameplay and the story will really suck you in ... 

Weird, i would think they would of uncompressed it a bit more to lessen the load times.

@ Lost Tears

I haven't finished it yet, but I can tell you - it a huge, huge game. You do have options. For instance, around the Citadel, you can choose fast public transport - it will take you all over the city and will hide load times - or you can walk to the spots yourself. I did also notice when I was on a mission, the load times would increase. I am sure this is due to the addition of more folks I will end up interacting with.

I am heading into space looking for this turncoat. I can jump to 3 different planets/galaxies - it's my choice which way I go. I'll do that this evening and get back to you all.