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[Gamer79]

This game is not only a great RPG. It is also one of the best shooters/battle system ever. So a game making these claims include what you ask?

-You decide how you want to play. You want to be be a powerful biotic and use your mind to destroy enemies or if you want to be a Super soldier head shooting people while slowing down time like the matrix or a mix of both. NO matter what play style you choose the combat is highly satisfying . Tons of different environments like enemies, boss encounters vehicle actions sequences, and numerous other events keep the game interesting. Decision making also effects releationships in the story in this game. You want to be a total asshole and have everyone hate you that is your choice. You want to be loved and respected it is also your choice. Some decisions can get Sheppard laid while others can get his crew members permanently. Shooting is top notch while tossing enemies around with your mind feels tight and enjoyable. The shooting in the legendary edition can go toe to toe with any shooter period in my book.

-Top Notch Story telling! The real treasure in this game is the many varied and interesting side quest. With all the missions in this game (100's) no two really feel the same. Most of the side missions are their own individual stories that are varied and interesting. Some are extremely twisted while others are just pure mind fucks. Some missions help build relationships with your crew members that may lead to their own survival. One arc they seem to repeat is that AI will ultimately kill their creator. There is also the main story line battling a Machine God Like Race to save the universe. I won't talk too much about the collectors but also a twisted tale. There is some really good storylines, Lore (tons of codec entries with details about hundreds of pieces of tech, alien race lore, location lore, etc etc. ) There is so much story in this game and all of it is interesting.

The bottom line is the game is as epic as it gets. Literally hundreds of hours of gameplay with much of it feeling not repetitive. This is a game where you feel like you have seen it all and it constantly throws something new at the player. I am not arguing with the overall trilogy decision results but in this game decisions really do matter. An epic Saga!

 

[LakeOf9]

It's definitely up there, but I would put at least Dark Souls, Elden Ring, and Bloodborne above it. I would also definitely put Skyrim above it, but not necessarily because Skyrim is better at combat lol

 

[LegendOfKage]

It might be my favorite game, and it's easily in the top five, but I don't really think of it as an Action RPG. More of a western RPG with unusually good combat.

 

[TrueLegend]

On PC Skyrim wins everything sadly, like everything due to modding.

 

[adamosmaki]

Not q fan. M.E 1 imo was a better rpg and better game overall

 

[Ozzie666]

My favorite trilogy and RPG series. I think ME 1 was better as a pure RPG, but 2 was the better game overall, smoother experience. Then when you include all the DLC, ME2 is pretty insane. The remaster made things even better and probably pushes ME 2 ahead.

None of which was possible without Knights of the Old Republic, which I also hold in high regard.

The evolution and changes from ME -> ME3 help make them somewhat unique with each being a different experience.

ME 1 is the game I wish I could experience again for the first time. The story and universe building are just sublime and still better than ME 2.

 

[Danjin44]

I personally not fan of BioWare's games and when it comes action combat in my RPGs, I'm much more fan of melee combat rather than shooters.

 

[Rac3r]

.

 

[vaibhavpisal]

It was a good game.

Wasn't an rpg though.

 

[TexMex]

I hear its amazing and leaps and bounds better than the first. I wanted to play them in order and I found the first game so painfully boring I quit in around 5-6 hours and just didn’t feel like I could skip it and get the most out of the second so I just gave up entirely.

 

[existensmaximum]

I think the first game is a masterpiece whereas ME2 is a generic, average shooter with a few glimpses of greatness. I don't think I've ever been so disappointed by a sequel, ever. As an RPG, it's a joke.

I felt like they suddenly wanted to appeal to a whole different demographic that isn't me.

 

[Warablo]

Mass Effect 1 was better

 

[ref]

It's alright. I prefer ME1 since it's more of an RPG with shooter elements. ME2 started the change of it being a shooter with RPG elements.

Plus, much better story, atmosphere and writing in ME1.

 

[k_trout]

I preferred 1

 

[Yoboman]

Behind the Soulsborne games

But definitely the best otherwise

 

[Yoboman]

It's alright. I prefer ME1 since it's more of an RPG with shooter elements. ME2 started the change of it being a shooter with RPG elements.

Plus, much better story, atmosphere and writing in ME1.

ME1 is clunky as hell and there was nothing special about its RPG elements

 

[Mokus]

Action-RPG like Diablo 2? Then no, nothing beats Diablo 2.

 

[ZehDon]

It's a really solid game overall, but for me, it's the suicide mission that elevates ME2 to God Tier status. No game drives home player choice and consequence like that mission. Is it the best ARPG ever? That's hard to say, but it's easy to agree it's absolutely a contender. I voted "Top 5".

 

[Labolas]

It's my favorite Bioware game for sure. Beat the game multiple times and on the hardest difficulty. Fun times.

 

[Camreezie]

Currently playing through Legendary Edition. 1 has the strong foundation but little things like every base you go to having the same structure i only noticed now. 2 is definitely the better game and all the dlc slotting in made it a lot longer than i remember.

Personally think 2 is a much better and linear game than 1 and more streamlined as you get given the side missions but 1 made you explore in the Mako

 

[Graciaus]

They cut all the rpg systems out of the game. ME1 is a mess of a game and instead of improving on it they just dumbed everything down.

 

[Rush2112]

suicide mission best RPG climax.

 

[Fuz]

No.

 

[simpatico]

I really loved it at release, but it hasn't aged well because of the writing. The remaster was a slog. The entire plot devolved into a pile of stereotypes held together by "teen lit" character interactions. It just doesn't have enough personality to overcome it. Japan really has the west beat in terms of writing outside of some Eastern Euro stuff. With all the RPG gameplay elements removed, it's hard to go back to. Not a bad game by any stretch, but not one I can see myself replaying. It's best served with foggy nostalgia. Replays just ruin the fond impressions.

 

[Yumi]

Best one for me in a science fiction setting.

Souls for fantasy setting.

 

[The Shepard]

Top 5 definitely. I replayed the trilogy a couple of years ago when the remaster released and the game is still great.

 

[adamsapple]

Yes.

Best WRPG.

The suicide mission is one of the most tense and thrilling gaming moment of my memory.

 

[brenobnfm]

Mass Effect 2 is not a RPG and it isn't even a good game, it was the beginning of the downfall of Bioware, EA turned a legendary game like Mass Effect in an uninspired mess with design based on market research = trash cover shooter gameplay, generic "epic" soundtrack, cringe worthy dramatic cutscenes, etc.

 

[brian0057]

Calling Mass Effect 2 "a great RPG" is incredibly generous given how much of the genre it gutted from the original game.
It's straight up a third person shooter. A very good one, but a shooter nonetheless.
ME1 is the best game in the franchise. And the one that actually belongs in a Top 5 for best action RPGs.

 

[Captain Toad]

Mass Effect 2 is great, but I can think of better ones. For example, Mass Effect 1 and Mass Effect 3.

 

[drganon]

I liked Mass effect 1 more.

 

[thegame983]

Kotor 2

 

[Punished Miku]

Its definitely up there. I havent replayed any ME for over 10 years though so I can't say what it feels like today. Will have to do that sometime soon.

 

[NT80]

Not the best ever but really good and much better than ME1. I would still put it as one of the best single player games I've played for a long time.

 

[AeonGaidenRaiden]

It's definitely up there, but I would put at least Dark Souls, Elden Ring, and Bloodborne above it. I would also definitely put Skyrim above it, but not necessarily because Skyrim is better at combat lol

All those souls games you mentioned have the bare minimum of a story compared to ME. To me an amazing RPG isnt just gameplay but a deep story as well. Souls games are so barebones considering you dont have some deep convo with the npc. Just some 10 sentence scroll explaining some monster. Not even close.

 

[Honey Bunny]

ME1 is clunky as hell and there was nothing special about its RPG elements

ME1 had an infinitely better story than ME2's little episodes (and ridiculous climax). Which let's be honest is way more important for an RPG than better gun handling/streamlined inventory shit.

 

[Isa]

I enjoyed my time with it, and really enjoyed the dlc content but I was really bummed out by the removal of some base features found in the first game. I get the audience the game was striving to capture, but it kind of lost me with that. Sadly apart from the more colorful style they went with, such as that main dude smoking with the glowing eyes which was cool, I don't remember too much. And the final mission did absolutely nothing for me. Its fake tension. I replayed it twice and never felt like I'd lose.

I also wasn't a fan of the "magic" system in the game universe as it made a few of the classes feel too similar and slightly confusing. Instead of great depth it just kind of boiled down to a rock paper scissors system. There was definitely a tonal shift between games, and I wonder just how much of that was on them or EA. It was a pretty good storydriven TPS with more options. Very rpg lite, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Sadly the music for me was completely forgettable. I personally would rate other action rpgs much higher, and even the studio's own games above it. Such a shame what happened to Bioware.

 

[Portugeezer]

Best game of that generation.

 

[ReBurn]

Mass Effect was my favorite game of that generation and the trilogy are some of my most played games ever. The amount of meaningful choice that has impact across the trilogy definitely makes it an action RPG.

 

[Griffon]

It was fun for sure. The combat had interesting ideas. But the plot was all over the place and was a prelude of a much bigger disaster with ME3.

Mass Effect had a chance to be something special, but Bioware/EA just had to fuck it up.

 

[Kev Kev]

It certainly is one of the best. Top 5. Probably in my top 10 of all time in any genre, tbh.

 

[GymWolf]

Slightly unrelated question, i'm playing me3 from the legendary edition for the first time, how do i chose the "good ending" that they added with the dlc because people was mad at the vanilla ending? try not to be too spoilery please.

Is it worth to go for that ending or you think the vanilla one is not that bad like people were saying?

 

[Mozzarella]

One of the best, my favorite space themed RPG.

 

[Werewolf Jones]

If it didn't have good pacing and a few hub areas it's pretty much FF XIII with guns. You pick blue option if good and red option if bad, very deep morality system.

 

[SkylineRKR]

I prefer the original. Its a better realized universe and more RPG ish. I was shocked how good ME1 actually is when I beat its Legendary Edition version on Series S.

 

[KyoZz]

I'm always struggling to make a "top" list as I just can't decide for some things.
As for Mass Effect (I like to think of it as a whole including 1, 2 and 3) it is up there. So top 5.

 

[GMCamaro]

The original was leagues better. No ‘thermal clips’ and those waist high barriers ever ten meters letting you know it was Gears of War time. Also, “Don’t fuck with Aria”? Seriously? Did we need shitty writing too?

I bought Mass Effect 2 because of Mass Effect 1. I didn’t buy Mass Effect 3 because of Mass Effect 2.

 

[ZoukGalaxy]

Not q fan. M.E 1 imo was a better rpg and better game overall

Mass Effect 1 was better

I preferred 1

It's alright. I prefer ME1 since it's more of an RPG with shooter elements. ME2 started the change of it being a shooter with RPG elements.

Plus, much better story, atmosphere and writing in ME1.

I prefer the original. Its a better realized universe and more RPG ish. I was shocked how good ME1 actually is when I beat its Legendary Edition version on Series S.

 

[e0n]

Slightly unrelated question, i'm playing me3 from the legendary edition for the first time, how do i chose the "good ending" that they added with the dlc because people was mad at the vanilla ending? try not to be too spoilery please.

Is it worth to go for that ending or you think the vanilla one is not that bad like people were saying?

There is a final option by refusing all other options at the end or attacking the "final encounter". It seemed shorter than the rest, but it's not necessarily "good".

 

[Superkewl]

Not even the best ME game, let alone RPG. 1 was better.