@Khuutra: If you play on the easier difficulties it's very easy to get by even without using your main strengths/powers. You can basically just shoot your way through everything. I'm sure you know that though. Playing on Insanity (and to a lesser degree, Hardcore) really forces you to use all of your available powers/skills and become a better player. If he played on an easier difficulty level then it's easy to see why he didn't use his powers.

Reminds me of the guy on my job that told me he bought a PS3 and Modern Warfare--and never left the training tutorial.  He said he just kept doing it over and over again and no matter what he did, he never could get to the first mission.  I told him that all he had to do was leave the area!

Anyhoo, I read through many of your posts, Khuutra and Darth Tigris, and let me tell you that my enjoyment of this game has increased immensely!!  I didn't think it was possible to love a game so much more during a repeat playthrough than the original playthrough.  Thanks for all of the tips.

The game has one almost every single reader's choice GotY award that I've found.  Could you imagine how much more beloved it would be if more people played on higher difficulties???

On of the things I ask of ME3 is that it force you to use your abilities even more instead of being able to shoot your way through stuff on lower difficulties.  

Last time i checked isn't Mass Effect 2 a game? Shouldn't people be able to beat it how they want and enjoy it how they want? My way worked didn't it? I got to level 30, beat the final boss, no one died, beat it on hard, and it worked. Might not work at higher difficulties, but works for hard and below. There is no one way to beat this game.

I followed advice from a guy who beat maniac in a similar fashion with a soldier, but used the Geth Shield Boost for the harder difficulty. He also beat the game with every other class. So what can I tell you, maybe his way works well?