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About to play all of the Mass Effect series. What should I know before I begin?

S

SatoAilDarko

Member
So I think I'm going to start Mass Effect on PS3 tonight. I just downloaded it today.

My sister's Fire TV I think bricked (orange flashing light) and I wanted to give them something they can watch streaming on as well as maybe play some games (I have 4 Moves, 8 Buzz Controllers).

I haven't plugged my Super Slim PS3 in a year not because I don't have games to play (it has my biggest backlog) but I've been busy and juggle several consoles so I thought I'll give it to them for the next six months of so. I did my best to blow out any dust with canned air and vacuum it but there really wasn't anything.

Before that there's one game (s) I want to play before I give it to them. Mass Effect Trilogy.

I was able to get through Trilogy for $5 off of PSN a while ago.

In terms of DLC the PS3 version comes with Bring Down the Sky but Pinnacle Station is not available because the source files are corrupted.

The PS3 version of Mass Effect 2 comes with Kasumi: Stolen Memory, Overlord and Lair of the Shadow Broker. The only story DLC missing seems to be Arrival.

For Mass Effect 3 I got Omega for free, got From Ashes and Leviathan for $5 each and Citadel for $7.50.

I think that only leaves Arrival for $7 missing in terms of DLC with actual missions correct? Any of the other DLC worth it? At this point I don't think they'll be a sale for Arrival but everything for $29.50 still seems okay.

Any thing I should know before I begin? Any tips? How's the difficulty? Is anything big missable forever? I know choice closes options but I'm talking more about stuff I could just miss by not doing it in time. Is there a right time to do the DLC?

How do they hold up as individual experiences? I'm interested in replaying 3 using those comics and hope to get a very different experience.

I also plan to play Mass Effect Andromeda when it's added to EA Access of Xbox One so any information I should know ahead of time for that as well will be appreciated.

I plan to be exhaustive and do as much as I can in the games. I hope to be finished with the trilogy before August.

Thanks for any responses.
 
P

purseowner

Member
1 shows promise, 2 is a masterpiece, 3 is any 3rd installment EA game in that it throws any promise out the window. Andromeda is a cynical product.
 
D

diaspora

Member
Don't take the writing in any of the games seriously. They make shit up as they go along and it shows.

Also, install mods for ME1 if possible, it's borderline unplayable without the fast-forward mod.
 
P

Pakkidis

Member
Its been a while since I've played them but Mass Effect 1 is very different from 2 and 3.

I'm not so sure anythings is "missable" in the sense that things are time related. I say just jump in and enjoy the ride.
 
M

MisterShine

Member
For Mass Effect 1, make sure you try and cycle through all the companions, don't just pick two favorites and stick only with them. All of them will play some role in the trilogy to come, even if they die during the story (not that they necessarily will). Companions usually have more to say after the major story quests are completed: check in with them on the ship regularly.

As for DLC, Bring Down the Sky is the only worthwhile piece for the first game, most of the DLC for the second and third games are pretty good at least.

You don't have to romance anybody if you don't want to.

You can change classes between games. I'd recommend vanguard for a first playthrough because they're pretty badass.

You don't really have to stick with Paragon or Renegade in the first game, but doing so gets you more free points in charm/intimidate. Try to have one of those meters maxed out by the end of the game though, you'll find out why. For the second game, pick one and stick to it like glue. For the third game it goes back to being less important.

Take your time, enjoy the ride. Hope this helps, feel free to ask any questions. I've played through the trilogy at least 3 or 4 full times.

ScientificPizza said:
Play as FemShep
Click to expand...

FemShep is significantly better than BroShep in ME1, the gap closes significantly in 2, and honestly I think Meer outdoes her finally in 3. It is very noticeable in 1, though.
 
A

Admiral Woofington

Member
Mass Effect 1: Neither of the other two games can beat this one in pure sci fi atmosphere. The writing is the strongest out of all them imho, at least with an overarching plot. FYI this is Citadel at its finest.

Mass Effect 2: Considered the best one by many due to gameplay and action, dialogue and party members are better, but the plot is near pointless to the overall plot.

Mass Effect 3: Just badly written all around. Cast of characters is extremely eh. Citadel DLC and returning characters save this as being the most endearing as the writers realize people really care about teammates.

Some things to take into consideration:

- Bioware had this narrative of "EVERY CHOICE YOU MAKE WILL MATTER SO CHOOSE CAREFULLY". Realize this is mostly bullshit, your choices have little impact and the pay off in Mass Effect 3 is one of the biggest disappointments I've ever had in my gaming life.

- Learn to love the Mako and planet exploration, because ME1's aspect in that doesn't return until Andromeda.

- Andromeda gets more hate than it deserves due to animations, but it's at most an ok game.
 
C

cakely

Member
ME1: There are generic side quests that you simply don't need to do. Don't do them, they're a waste of your time. You will feel better if you just stick with the main missions.
 
J

JimJamJones

Member
Go in blind. It's a great trilogy - one of gaming's best.

1 is amazing.
2 is even better.
3 is good, except for the ending.
Andromeda is a game that exists.
 
S

Sinatar

Official GAF Bottom Feeder
If you really like Mass Effect 1 you should probably stop after you're done, the sequels throw out everything that game did right.

If you don't like Mass Effect 1, play the other 2, you'll probably enjoy them more.
 
S

shawnbuddy

Member
The combat is a little more engaging if you bump up the difficulty a notch above normal.

Mass Effect 1 has a horrendous problem with repetitious content. Don't feel like you need to do every small side quest you discover. Most of them literally take place in the same building or ship, identical layouts.
 
B

Biscotti

Neo Member
I want you to play Andromeda first and then tell us how you feel about the other ones after. It would be interesting to see how your opinion differs to people who played ME1 on launch etc.

Edit: Also, Do not listen to anyone telling you to skip a certain game. Just play it and see if you like it.
 
X

xealo

Member
Don't bounce off the series if the gameplay of ME1 doesn't grab you. It's the only game in the series that doesn't play more like other less clunky cover based games.
 
W

wtd2009

Member
I second the post above about garrus, he's a great character. But the best thing about these games is how you will make the journey all your own, and it won't be any less satisfying.

Also, in the first mass effect dont waste too much time exploring/driving around the random planets that aren't associated with main quests, character quests, or substantial side quests. eventually it becomes apparent how repetitive and unrewarding that type if quest is, there's not much substance to it. That'll help you avoid burnout.

Last, this franchise is more about the journey than the ending. Keep that in mind and you'll likely enjoy it as much as I did. I wish I could play through this franchise for the first time again.
 
S

shawnbuddy

Member
Oh, to save you the shock, be prepared for your imported character to not look quite right in 3. They changed the system and my Shepard suddenly looked a lot more like Jodie Foster than I'd intended.
 
G

Grimsen

Member
Prepare to play all three twice, to get all the paragon/renegade and femshep/maleshep goodness.

You don't need more info than that.

Skip Andromeda.
 
A

ArgyleReptile

Banned
Enjoy the world and intrigue introduced in the first game.
Enjoy the blockbuster action and fantastic characters in the second.
Keep your expectations in check for the third.
 
S

shawnbuddy

Member
Also, don't listen to the haters. Andromeda is the glitchiest AAA game I have ever played, but it's also a good game that's a lot of fun.

In Mass Effect 3 at least, don't flirt carelessly. I casually flirted with a relatively unimportant character and got a sex scene pretty early. Unfortunately this casual sex meant the game decided they were my one true love and options I would have pursued were closed off.
 
T

ThoseDeafMutes

Member
What you should know before you begin:

  • Always talk to squad members between major missions. That's when new dialogue appears
  • All three games have "points of no return". In ME1 it's when you get summoned back to the citadel after doing most / all of the main missions. In Mass Effect 2 it's when you go to complete your main quest (pretty obvious), but you should also do most of what you want to do before you do the "IFF" mission (it will make sense when you get to it)
  • In ME1, if a mission is marked "UNC" it's probably a low quality filler mission. Matriarch writings, mineral minings and so on do not offer tangible rewards in any of the games and are not worth doing. In ME2 such missions are generally combat heavy, I believe they're called "N7" or similar missions.
  • In ME2, upgrade your ship's main systems whenever you get the option.
  • Soldier is probably the most boring class although it's a little better in ME2/3 than in the first game.
  • Despite what people say, Male Shepard is just as good as Female Shepard, they are both stronger and weaker at various points but just go with whatever you feel like you want to try. There's no "right" choice.
  • Custom characters WILL look terrible as soon as you leave the custom character creator and are exposed to ingame lighting.
  • Neutral playstyles where you're both paragon and renegade in equal measure are generlaly less powerful / give less options than when you stick mostly to one or the other. This is particularly true in ME2 where persuasion is more directly tied to paragon/renegade points.
  • In ME1, charm/intimidate are both very useful for getting out of jams, but you should also do personal quests for your side characters to avoid certrain sticky situations late in the game.
  • Mentally prepare yourself to have your choices trivialized by the end of the trilogy. Some of them get trivialized much sooner.
 
S

SatoAilDarko

Member
Question, is it possible to recruit all the possible squad mates throughout all three games?

Can some be missed? Will your alignment and/or decisions affect whether you can recruit some?
 
K

kcp12304

Banned
Choose a class beside Soilder.

SatoAilDarko said:
Question, is it possible to recruit all the possible squad mates throughout all three games?

Can some be missed? Will your alignment and/or decisions affect whether you can recruit some?
Click to expand...

You can recruit them all but some can be missed. I wouldn't worry about missing any. Your alignment won't effect recruitment.
 
C

chaosaeon

Member
There are unfixed bugs in the PS3 version of ME1 (no spoilers ahead) that can even prevent you from finishing the end of the game due to crashing the PS3 during the end battle or in the cutscene following it. Audio during conversations can randomly drop out during any line, making you miss the entire line of conversation if you don't use subtitles, and the volume sliders in the options menu actually don't do anything at all. Seriously, you can move things like music volume and it won't be any louder or quieter, only 0% volume and 100% volume actually work. And dialogue volume is bugged as well, doesn't adjust ambient lines, so you can't hear what characters randomly say in the world outside of conversations unless you try to fiddle with other volume sliders as well (which are bugged). Seriously, how can a team release something that doesn't even have the options menu work properly ?

There can be other random crashes sometimes during loading screens, occasionally both squadmates will get stuck 1 foot behind Shep and follow you so close it looks like you're doing a conga line, and afaik all the bugs from the 360 version are still present and they never bothered to fix them (like a bug affecting one of the moves for the Vanguard class). Also had a bug where you had a weapon drawn but the camera doesn't snap to over the shoulder view, and your movement, no matter what direction you press, will make you step forward. Hit down/back on the stick, take a step forward, hit left, step forward. This results in you just running forward into you hit a wall while pushing the stick in every direction you can as you run in place up against a wall, and it can also get you killed if it happens during combat and then you have to reload your last save. Occasionally weapons decide to stop firing and you can press the trigger repeatedly with no effect (not including when a weapon is overheated or affected by enemy abilities). And squadmates will pull out the wrong weapons they can't even use during combat (making them unable to do any real weapon damage) even though you've set them to use ones they are proficient with making you have to double check that the game even remembers what you assigned every time to enter combat. It's overall not a good port, and the team that made it didn't seem interested in fixing any of the games issues at all while managing to add plenty of their own.

Aside from technical incompetence/negligence, Femshep is bestshep, most of the DLC in ME2 and 3 feels like/is cut content so it's good you got that, don't get used to having infinite ammo in ME1 because weapons were made worse and given badly thought out explanations for why they retconned ammo into the game. Also don't get used to how you can use your powers in ME1 because they made them all have universal cooldowns in ME2 and 3.
 
S

shawnbuddy

Member
Oh, you know how in some games, the storyline will have an "urgent" mission but you can fart around forever with no consequence? Yeah, that's not the case in Mass Effect 2. You'll know the urgent mission when you get it and ignoring it too long has very negative consequences. I had to back to a much earlier point and replay because I felt so bad about it.
 
Megatron

Megatron

Member
You want to play them all before August? That seems ambitious. You mean the end of August? That still seems unrealistic to me unless you have crazy amounts of time on your hands. I feel like you will get burned out trying to play all those in a month.

you may want to do some research as to what classes to use. I was an Engineer in the first and a Soldier in the second.
 
S

shawnbuddy

Member
I'm glad you got From the Ashes. I don't think you could call ME3 a complete game without it. Perfect example of the EA policy of slicing out a percentage of a game and making you buy it as DLC or including it in a way to discourage used game sales.

I've played Engineer all four games. It's the most efficient. Enemies have three kinds of barriers: shield, armor and biotic. Engineers have ready options for disabling the first two and biotic barriers are pretty rare.
 
T

ThoseDeafMutes

Member
SatoAilDarko said:
Question, is it possible to recruit all the possible squad mates throughout all three games?

Can some be missed? Will your alignment and/or decisions affect whether you can recruit some?
Click to expand...

Yes, you can collect all squadmates in a single playthrough. It's possible to miss some but very unlikely in the first and third games. In ME1, you basically have to refuse characters to not get them.

In ME2, there are two cases where you are given a choice of whether or not to reactivate certain things. If you want all squadmates, you should do so. I don't know anybody who ever missed them, but it's "possible".

There are DLC squadmates in ME2 and 3, I'm unsure of whether you'll get these by default or not.

I am not aware of alignment ever making a difference in who you can recruit off the top of my head.
 
D

Dingens

Member
Sinatar said:
If you really like Mass Effect 1 you should probably stop after you're done, the sequels throw out everything that game did right.

If you don't like Mass Effect 1, play the other 2, you'll probably enjoy them more.
Click to expand...

this so much...
absolutely hated ME2 and 3, wish I had stopped after one.

the thing I didn't know back then: ME1 is an RPG, but ME2 and 3 are dialogue-heavy cover-based 3rd person shooters.
 
S

shawnbuddy

Member
In Mass Effect 2 there's a point where you can swap a character for another. That one is definitely the most missable, because you might like the original character and want to keep it.
 
Stiler

Stiler

Member
Go in blind, have fun and play how you want when it comes to the choices. Be wary of googling, you can have it spoiled easily.

For your squad, pick who you like.

For me personally I went with Garrus, Liara, and Wrex with ME1 and loved it.

DLC order, I tend to do the ones that give you a squadmate early, that way you get them on your team and can use the ones you like.


Regarding Andromeda, while it's not as good as ME2 it's still a fun game imo.
 
T

ThoseDeafMutes

Member
Dingens said:
the thing I didn't know back then: ME1 is an RPG, but ME2 and 3 are dialogue-heavy cover-based 3rd person shooters.
Click to expand...

Not RPGs, just regular ordinary dialogue-heavy, character-focused, quest-filled, cover-based 3rd person shooters with morality meters, hub worlds and character progression.

You can dislike them, but they're all RPGs.

shawnbuddy said:
In Mass Effect 2 there's a point where you can swap a character for another. That one is definitely the most missable, because you might like the original character and want to keep it.
Click to expand...

Oh I forgot about that bit, but frankly the replacement character is not worthwhile, they impersonate the original character and you have to be laughably, cartoonishly evil to want to do it. I barely consider them to be a squadmate.
 
K

K.Jack

Knowledge is power, guard it well
Sinatar said:
If you really like Mass Effect 1 you should probably stop after you're done, the sequels throw out everything that game did right.

If you don't like Mass Effect 1, play the other 2, you'll probably enjoy them more.
Click to expand...

Skip NeoGAF's 2010 GOTY winner?

Sage advice.
 
M

momshotdad

Member
Skip Andromeda. I tried to play it as my first Mass Effect and was burned out around 6 hours. My friend told me it's the worst one and I truly believe it.
 
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