RPG
Mass Effect 2
The epic “space opera” continues with Bioware’s latest, Mass Effect 2.
The first Mass Effect was released on the Xbox 360 a little over 2 years ago, and has since then become a platinum hit due to it’s popularity. The first Mass Effect (will be now referred to as ME1 and ME2) was great, it wasn’t perfect, but it could easily hook you into a few hours of gameplay without one even realizing it. When you jump from ME1 to ME2, you experience a new level of gameplay closely akin to going from Uncharted 1 to Uncharted 2.
Everything you loved about ME1 is in ME2, and everything you hated has actually been taken out. If you even remotely enjoyed ME1, then it is almost a sure thing you will want to try out ME2.
Warning! This may contain some small “spoilers”, so be wary!
Story: I won’t go into great depths with the story since it would take a long, long time to explain it all. Let me just start by saying you should play through ME1 for its story (along with additional bonuses I’ll explain later) or at least read up on the story at a MEwiki. The basic outline for ME2’s story is your standard “hero saves all” archetype.
You start back up as Commander Shepard, or as your custom shep, and are informed about a new threat to the galaxy from a mysterious interested party member. Your job is to recruit new and old team members to fight back this galactic threat and save the day (again). There are neat plot “twists” you discover about 3/4 through the game, but nothing major.
The entire game your main goal is taking out this new threat, but this enemy is still connected to the original enemy you faced in ME1 (which is why I suggest play/read up on ME1). Suffice to say, when you beat the game, there is still more to do. We’ve already gotten teasers for Mass Effect 3, so one can assume it’s going to take quite a bit to completely “save” the galaxy.
Graphics: For Xbox, the graphics are above average. They aren’t the best on the console I think, but they do the game justice. There has been a HUGE improvement over ME1’s technical abilities however, which is easily noticeable. There aren’t as many clipping issues and the lip syncing has improved, although it isn’t perfect. Sometimes faces look a little…odd, but it isn’t anything to really worry about. Overall, I’d say the games graphics are good enough for the gameplay. If they could improve them even more (without increasing the amount of discs) in future games, it’d be a much welcome change.
Gameplay: Here’s where the fun is. First, I’ll be honest. The fighting does get a little repetitive, but it only starts to sink in if you play the game 2+ times (like I did). Bioware streamlined combat and cut out some fat that ultimately leaves for a much more action oriented experience. Here are a few of the changes:
- Instead of weapons overheating, you get “thermal clips”. They act as the same concept, but now you actually use ammo and have to replenish your supply.
- There are a lot less abilities to use during combat.
- Hacking terminals and bypassing safes are easier, and more “fun” (not by much though).
- Class specific abilities are very unique and leave for a custom tailored gameplay experience.
The Paragon/Renegade system is still in place, and even has had a small addition to it. You continue to build your “good” guy or “evil” guy by choosing either Paragon or Renegade choices like in ME1, however Bioware introduced the context-sensitive trigger system. During a conversation or cut-scenes a Paragon or Renegade L/R trigger may appear, allowing you to change the outcome of the dialogue completely. I have to say, all of the Renegade triggers are way too awesome to skip.
There are also changes to the weapons, armor and inventory systems. Gone are the days where you horde up over 100 pieces of gear only to sell them all to an NPC or convert them into Omni-Gel. You buy new pieces of armor at shops and customize your head, shoulders, body, arms and legs for your Shepard only. You can get alternate costumes for squad mates, but you don’t gear up their armor at all. For weapons, you find them on missions and switch them for yourself/squad mates as you see fit. Heavy weapons have been introduced, and can easily change the tide of battle if used correctly. Grenades are gone, completely. You get a squad mate with a grenade ability, but that’s it.
Last, upgrades are done through either purchasing them with credits at a merchant, or using resources gathered from planets. Now if you played ME1, you’ll remember the dreadful MAKO. Well, that’s gone. Instead, they replaced it with the ability to scan planets for resources. It’s annoying still, but if you use a planet guide you can get the resources you want in a fairly quick manner.
Overall: Mass Effect 2 pulls you in with an epic opening, and immediately leaves you with a billion questions. The grand scheme of ME2 sometimes makes you feel insignificant, as if your actions will in the end be futile. A game like this only comes around once in a while, and is definitely game of the year material. While it may take some a little time to get used too, ME2 is surely a game everyone should experience at least once. If you have an Xbox 360, check it out, I’d be surprised if you were disappointed with it.
P.S. By completing ME1, you can transfer your old data and get bonuses in ME2 such as extra credits, resources, and levels. Your actions also transfer, so if you were an asshole in ME1, some returning characters in ME2 are still going to think you’re an asshole.
Star Ocean 4
I guess I should start with a minor update. I quit FFXI a little over a month ago. The game just started feeling like too much of a chore that you do everyday, repeating the same things over and over again. Anyways, I guess I still have “knowledge” of the game (unless SE decides to revamp any tech. aspects of the game) and could help people with fSTR, pDIF, level difference and other stuff that deals with math and that sort.
On to the new Blorg! I’ve decided to just make this a video games in general blog instead of dedicating it to FFXI. Every once in a while I’ll write up something about a game I enjoyed, and think others would enjoy. What I’d like to get out of this blog is to have people try out new games, and also possibly suggest new games for me to try out!
The first game I’m going to talk about is Star Ocean: The Last Hope (also known as Star Ocean 4). The Star Ocean franchise is generally known to many by the second and third releases, Star Ocean: The Second Story and Star Ocean: Till the End of Time. The Star Ocean games are close to that of the ‘Tales’ games in terms of battle. So, if you like the ‘Tales’ games, there’s a high chance you’ll like the Star Ocean games.
Now lets get into Star Ocean 4. This game has your normal JRPG story, good guy vs some type of evil. At least one plot “twist”. Very lightly clothed females, and the token annoying character(s). Don’t get the wrong idea, I know it sounds like I’m looking down upon the game but just hear me out. I’ll get into each part of the game in detail now.
Warning! This may contain some small “spoilers”, so be wary!
Story: Personally, I enjoyed the story a lot. Since this is supposed to be a “prequel” to the first Star Ocean game, you see a lot of the story driven towards ideas in the first Star Ocean game. There will be a lot of “A-ha” moments during the game if you’ve played the first Star Ocean game. Anyways, the actual story is a general good guy vs bad guy one. It’s easy enough to follow and you won’t be left completely lost. There’s only one point where I thought “but wait….how did this happen if this just did…”. Beating the game was very satisfying, and with multiple endings/secret endings, you’ll want to do all you can during the game to progress the story the “right” way.
Graphics: Not much to say. The game looks fantastic. Scenery is bright and vibrant when it should be, and lighting/shadows are awesome.
Gameplay: The battle system is very easy to get used too. At first you do need to be “careful” with how you attack, as you only start with 2 characters and battles are “long”. As you progress through the game, you get more characters and skills. The weapon skills and magic make the fights fun. If you like fighting up front, there’s tons of skills to tailor to your liking. Staying back and attacking is still just as fun with other characters. Personally, I used the Archer and Mage the most of the time. Near the end of the game, battles can become somewhat of a “button mashing” session. However, in some of the extra dungeons, you do need to be more careful and mindful of your party status instead of just mashing the A/Trigger buttons.
Overall: This is one of the few RPG’s actually worth getting. You may get annoyed with a character or two sometimes, but you should enjoy this game if you like real time combat games. I’ve got 80hours on my file so far and still have not beat the last real “boss” of the game. I also still have loads of achievements to unlock and only have gone through the game once on the “normal” difficulty. This is one of the few RPG’s I’ll go through again.
Star Ocean 4 is a nice game to take up some time. I don’t suggest you trying to do a dungeon in 10 minutes, as save points are sometimes sparse. If you have a day off work or something, you can get through a good chunk of the game. I’ve been waiting forever to get another good RPG for my 360. It’s been a while since I played through Lost Odyssey and Mass Effect, and I was pretty dissapointed in The Last Remnant. After playing through Star Ocean though, I think I can say my RPG hunger has been satisfied… for the moment.