Recordkeeping: Mass Effect 1 COMPLETE AGAIN

[xyzzysqrl]

In my ongoing quest to do the worst things possible to myself, I've decided to replay the entire Mass Effect trilogy. When I say "Replay", I mean I've played Mass Effect 1 and all its DLC before, I've played Mass Effect 2 but only one of its DLC (Zaeed), and I've never played Mass Effect 3 at all due to various reasons.

So, Mass Effect. My god, but I love this game. I find it infinitely replayable, and every time I feel as if I've learned or discovered something new. There's a sense of exploration and discovery, a sense that you're a small part of a bigger world, making strong bonds with a small close-knit crew. All things that decrease in the sequels, but are extremely big here.

Also, there's the Mako. No other Mass Effect game lets you haul your delightfully awful Spider-Van out to the surface of some shithole blizzard planet and just careen up and down slopes looking for mineral deposits. I love the goddamn Mako.

That's not to say I can't pick nits and criticize, but I don't actually want to. I'm 1/3rd of the way through my journey now. Mass Effect 2 is going to be interesting. I made a lot of what I feel were "mistakes" last time I played, although they were just alternate routes. I'm going to see about adjusting things this time -- but I've also got the DLC to play through and I have no idea how any of that goes.

Then there'll be Mass Effect 3, with its legendary fanbase-obliterating ending. That's not why ... no, that's HALF of why I'm afraid to touch it. The other half is that after bonding with the cast for two games, I know horrible things will happen to them in ME3.

I don't know specifics, but there's at least one heavily-foreshadowed death (AND he's my favorite romance choice oh god) and the implications and ambiant spoilers have hinted to me that making certain choices result in the universe being a better place at great personal loss. That's going to be hard to deal with. I am absolutely 100% positive that I am going to cry SUPER HARD during Mass Effect 3. Maybe just some scenes, maybe I will spend the entire game giving out great heaving sobs as I play.

Isn't that a terrifying mental image? I am SCREWED UP.

Anyway... Mass Effect 1 re-completed as Emily Shepard, irritable but soft-hearted mostly-Renegade Vanguard. Good job, me.

Comments

[ff00ff.livejournal.com]

I'm afraid ME3's ending isn't upsetting because of how brutal it is, but because of how much of a nonsequitur it is.

There are a lot of people who will tell you that the mako was the worst part of ME. Those people are wrong. In a way the mako was the best part of ME.

[xyzzysqrl]

Believe me, I've heard every possible thing it is possible to hear about the ME3 ending.

I have heard it was a nonsequitur, a lie, wrong, bad, terrible, the worst thing to happen to the series, retroactively killed all pleasure in the entire series, was okay, was great actually, was not that bad, was that bad but the complaints were overblown, was the last breath of Bioware before they died, and so on and so on. I've ever watched them on Youtube, just for the hell of it.

None of it matters, since I'm playing the DLC-corrected version and also if anyone tries to start a fight about it I may strangle them with their own internal organs.

[dang-bunni.livejournal.com]

Whether the Mako was the best or worst part of ME1 appears to depend on the version you're playing. I'm told the mouse/keyboard controls for it are absolutely awful.

I wouldn't know, 'cause I bought the console version; the PC Mass Effect 1 had SecuROM, so the console had less-annoying DRM.

The Hammerhead controlled better than the Mako in most ways, but it was the most fragile 'tank' ever. Good grief.

[phennphawcks.livejournal.com]

The ME trilogy is by a long margin the best RPG I've played in a long time.