Who cares about the box art. It's the quality of the game.

kind of a shame really - when the trailer for ME2 teased that shepard was dead I thought that this is a good move and Bioware could then expand on the universe, concentrate on different species and make the game about the universe, cultures etc and maybe pick up the struggle with a different character from a different angle.

Then we have Shepard on the cover and him being the centre point in every clip - I just hope this doesn't pan out to be another franchise that follows one man only and his single quest in every game when there's a load of potential here.

The devs said ME2 will be crazy that central players will probably die off and not make it to the next game, depending on how you play. This includes shepard.

Good, i'm not saying he needs to die - just that I think they've succeeded in creating a fantastic gaming universe with so many complex species interactions, histories, problems, advantages etc and I literally have completed ME three times and am still learning new stuff on each play through.

I just would kinda like them to make the franchise about the universe and not just one mans plight. Maybe we'll have new ME spin-offs / sister franchises down the line when this story has completed, who knows

Mass Effect 2 is the second part of a planned trilogy, Shepard will be the main character in the 3rd game, but only if you make sure he survives the second game. After ME3, the story will probably move on from Shepard. They do have plans for Mass Effect to be a big franchise, the first spin off came out on iPhone and didn't feature Shepard as the main character. So it is possible they'll do something with more focus on the wider universe or on particular species.

@ asriel, Shep will always be the main character in 3, you will just have to use a new one if your Shep died in 2

Who cares about the cover. Bring us the game now. :D

A new Shepard? That's a little strange... I'd rather it be a new character, so that Shepard's death is felt in the game universe.

Lol, reminds me of BeerFest:

spoilers from wiki: (couldn't find the clip)

When Landfill discovers her true identity, Cherry makes him fall into a beer vat, where he dies trying to drink his way out. The team decides to disband, but suddenly, in a comically obvious deus ex machina, Landfill's very talented twin brother, Gil (also played by Heffernan), shows up and asks to join the team and be called "Landfill" as tribute to his brother, making the dialogue no different between the team.

I agree, but preferably everyone will stay alive in mine