Mass Effect 2 - Various Hands-On Reports

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Mass Effect 2 - Various Hands-On Reports

Post by Shir'le E. Illios »

Yesterday was “E-Day” for Mass Effect 2; or Embargo-lifting Day. Appartently some time ago a bunch of journalists were invited by BioWare to come over and try Mass Effect 2 first-hand, and yesterday they were allowed to report on their experiences. As such there’s a weath of articles and movies for this hands-on experience which encompassed the first hour or so of the game.

I have to put a warning here though; most of these articles posted a massive spoiler for the start of the game. A number even in the first paragraph. Since it’s just the beginning it might not matter that much to you, but personally I would’ve preferred not knowing yet. I’ll try to clearly mark which articles/videos spoil things and which don’t though.

First is a spoiler-free article over on IGN titled “[url=http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/105/10558 ... l:2xx01ktd]Love, Decisions, and the Future[/url:2xx01ktd]” which talks about your ability to import saves from the first game, how that impacts your experience and how the love story from the first game continues (considering that none of the love interests from the first game will be recruitable party members in the second game). Here’s an excerpt:

[quote:2xx01ktd] Many of you may have played through Mass Effect multiple times, making different decisions in repeat sessions to see how sub plots would play out. Others may have played the game once, but in the years that have since passed forgotten which decisions they made. Either way, BioWare has you covered. At the outset of the game, a screen will come up that prompts you to import a save from Mass Effect, should one exist. Each time you beat Mass Effect, a special save file was created that stores all of the choices you made, what level your character was at, and where your Paragon/Renegade status sat.[/quote:2xx01ktd]
The Polish site Polygamia has an interview with Adrien Cho titled “[url=http://polygamia.pl/Polygamia/1,95338,7 ... l:2xx01ktd]Czym jest Cerberus Network z Mass Effect 2?[/url:2xx01ktd]” which, not speaking any Polish, I’m guessing means something like “What is the Cerberus Network in Mass Effect 2?”. The interview is in Polish, but they have the English translation in a sidebar on the right. The article is spoiler free as far as I recall. Here’s an excerpt:

[quote:2xx01ktd] Some time ago you said that Mass Effect 2 will come on two DVDs. Will we have to swap them, or will the game just install from one and play from the other?

I don't know the specifics of how you can install one disc or the second disc, and this might be more of a Microsoft kind of question, but the game is huge. We realized that we can't put it on one disc so we put it on two discs. But we also figured out the most logical way to do it so it wouldn't be inconvenient to players.[/quote:2xx01ktd]
Over on 1UP they have a “[url=http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?cId=3177363:2xx01ktd]Mass Effect 2 Preview[/url:2xx01ktd]” article in which the author list seven “hily shit” moments (basically seven things that really impresed him). The article is mostly spoiler-free, just the last point contains spoilers and those are clearly masked-out (you have to highlight the text to read the spoilers), so safe to read. Here’s an excerpt:

[quote:2xx01ktd][b:2xx01ktd]No. 2 -- Holy shit: New gear and powers rock.[/b:2xx01ktd]

Another big boost to the combat is your actual gear and abilities. New weapons range from grenade launchers to machine pistols that fire in three-shot bursts. Weapons now have inherent traits, such as machine pistols being great at taking down shields, while heavy pistols pound on physical armor more effectively. And then there are different ammunition types, such as disruptor rounds effective against shielded or mechanical targets, and cryogenic rounds for freezing/stun potential.[/quote:2xx01ktd]
GameSpot has a “[url=http://uk.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/masseffec ... 8:2xx01ktd]Mass Effect 2 Interview: Adrien Cho[/url:2xx01ktd]” video. Unfortunately mentions the big spoiler in the video so if you want to remain unspoiled then don’t watch it (he doesn’t really say anything that’s not in any of the articles anyway). If you don’t mind the spoiler then you can watch it here:

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GameSpot also has a written article titled “[url=http://uk.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/masseffec ... s:2xx01ktd]Unraveling the Mystery of Shepard[/url:2xx01ktd]”. Though the text isn’t quite as platant as the video (they don’t come right out and say it), they do strongly hint at it and spoil the opening setup of the game. They’re much better at avoiding a spoiler from Mass Effect 1 later on in the article. Here’s a spoiler-free excerpt:

[quote:2xx01ktd] Along the way, however, you'll encounter a number of familiar faces from the original game. What's most interesting is how prior story choices affect these reunions. Much has been made about the ability to import your save file from Mass Effect, but until now, BioWare hadn't been very forthcoming with details on this feature. After a bit of prodding, here's what BioWare was willing to tell us: The save file that you import carries over the story choices you made in the original game; provides specific boosts to your combat abilities without maintaining your old skill levels; and keeps the same gender while providing a chance for you to redesign your character's appearance.[/quote:2xx01ktd]
The Escapist has an article titled “[url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/article ... 2:2xx01ktd]Five Things BioWare Fixed for [i:2xx01ktd]Mass Effect 2[/i:2xx01ktd][/url:2xx01ktd]” in which they list five things that they feel were improved from the first game. Since it doesn’t really list any story details it’s spoiler-free. Here’s an excerpt:

[quote:2xx01ktd]I hated the combat in [i:2xx01ktd]Mass Effect[/i:2xx01ktd] and viewed it as a necessary chore that I had to endure in order to get to the fun parts of the game. Conversely, I played through several combat-heavy sequences in [i:2xx01ktd]Mass Effect 2[/i:2xx01ktd] and thoroughly enjoyed all of them, even though some of them were fairly difficult. Controls for you and your squadmates can either be accessed via the power wheel, which pauses the game, or by mapping them to the controller. Once you've mapped your favorites, you can go through fight sequences without once bringing up the wheel, which keeps the action fast and fluid. I usually just worried about my own firepower and abilities, leaving my companions up to the AI, which seemed to work just fine. The fighting feels less unique than it used to, but the more fast-paced, less frustrating experience is worth it.

To help balance the weapons a little better, guns now use "thermal clips" to keep them from overheating. Each clip has a limited amount of use - it might cool off 20 shots from a pistol, but just one from a sniper rifle. Clips are universal and can be used in any weapon, but you're still going to have a finite number at your disposal, so you'll have to think hard about how you choose to arm yourself going into a fight.

By the way, if you're concerned that BioWare has turned your beloved [i:2xx01ktd]Mass Effect[/i:2xx01ktd] into some kind of generic shooter, don't be - all the RPG elements you loved from the first game are still there in the sequel, I promise.[/quote:2xx01ktd]
IGN was nice enough to split their hands-on experience into two articles; one spoiler-free article and one heavy on spoilers. Their “[url=http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/105/10561 ... l:2xx01ktd]Mass Effect 2 Hands-on[/url:2xx01ktd]” article is the spoiler-free one; here’s an excerpt:

[quote:2xx01ktd]After sucking you back into the story in thrilling fashion, Mass Effect 2 begins to introduce its revamped combat system. The ideas are the same, though it all handles much better. In your first introduction to the action elements, the game will quickly take you through the ins and outs of using cover, the power wheel, equipping weapons and managing their ammunition, and snapping out quick commands to your two squad mates. Mass Effect veterans will be right at home, though they'll quickly notice how much better it feels as they quickly advance through the unobtrusive tutorial. Rookies will quickly be brought up to speed.[/quote:2xx01ktd]
Their spoiler-filled article is appropriately titled “[url=http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/105/10561 ... l:2xx01ktd]IGN Spoils the First Ten Minutes of Mass Effect 2[/url:2xx01ktd]”. And true to their word they make the biggest spoiler right in the very first sentence (without any further warning). In fact, pretty much every sentence is a spoiler and as such I won’t post an excerpt. The article is quite brief though (as the main content is in the hands-on article posted above).

IGN also has a couple of videos. There’s a number of gameplay videos which have appeared at a couple of sites. The first two are relatively safe spoiler-wise, just showing gameplay of Shepard fighting an invasion of robots and some conversation. The third does contain something of a spoiler though (htinging at the big spiler). The gameplay seems to be on the PC. Here are the videos:

[center:2xx01ktd][html]<a href="http://uk.pc.ign.com/dor/objects/142350 ... e">Hostile Detected</a><br />
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<br />
<a href="http://uk.pc.ign.com/dor/objects/142350 ... 8lh">Still Alive</a><br />
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<br />
<a href="http://uk.pc.ign.com/dor/objects/142350 ... l">Weapons Down</a><br />
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Shacknews also has a hands-on article titled “[url=http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/61655:2xx01ktd]Hands On with Shepard[/url:2xx01ktd]”. Since the writer shares the concerns over spoiling to twist at the start his article is completely spoiler-free. Here’s an excerpt:

[quote:2xx01ktd] With the January 26 release date looming, EA and BioWare recently pulled back the curtain at a press event, providing a detailed look at Mass Effect 2 (PC, Xbox 360). Some might actually feel that what was shown goes deeper than they'd like. I share that concern and accordingly have carefully considered where to draw the line on what to include in this preview. In the end, though, even the full wealth of info only served to make me that much more eager to finally get to play the game.[/quote:2xx01ktd]
Finally Eurogamer also has a spiler-free article titled “[url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/how-m ... e:2xx01ktd]How ME2 will work without ME1 save[/url:2xx01ktd]”. The article looks at, unsirprisingly, how Mass Effect 2 will work if you’re [i:2xx01ktd]not[/i:2xx01ktd] using a save from Mass Effect 1. Basically it decides some stuff for you and asks you about some of the big decisions you could make (in “Who’s the current President?”-fashion as another article put it). Here’s an excerpt:

[quote:2xx01ktd] "In some cases you get asked a question - 'What do you remember about that? What happened at this point in time?' - and you get to decide on the fly," Muzyka told G4TV. "You actually do get a bit of a choice still.

"In other cases, we make assumptions based on what the majority of fans are going to find really compelling and what we think is the best artistic choice, the most emotionally engaging way to have the story unfold.[/quote:2xx01ktd]
And that’s it for now... and probably for this year (as far as ME2 goes) as I’m off on holiday starting tomorrow. :)


[[url=http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/105/10558 ... l:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to “Love, Decisions, and the Future” article at IGN.
[[url=http://polygamia.pl/Polygamia/1,95338,7 ... l:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to interview with Adrien Cho at Polygamia.
[[url=http://www.1up.com/do/previewPage?cId=3177363:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to preview article at 1UP.
[[url=http://uk.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/masseffec ... 8:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to video interview with Adrien Cho at GameSpot.
[[url=http://uk.gamespot.com/pc/rpg/masseffec ... s:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to “Unraveling the Mystery of Shepard” article at GameSpot.
[[url=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/article ... 2:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to “Five Things BioWare Fixed for [i:2xx01ktd]Mass Effect 2[/i:2xx01ktd]” article at The Escapist.
[[url=http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/105/10561 ... l:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to hands-on article at IGN.
[[url=http://uk.pc.ign.com/articles/105/10561 ... l:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to spoiler article at IGN.
[[url=http://uk.pc.ign.com/dor/objects/142350 ... e:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to “Hostile Detected” video at IGN.
[[url=http://uk.pc.ign.com/dor/objects/142350 ... h:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to “Still Alive” video at IGN.
[[url=http://uk.pc.ign.com/dor/objects/142350 ... l:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to “Weapons Down” video at IGN.
[[url=http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/61655:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to “Hands On with Shepard” article at Shacknews.
[[url=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/how-m ... e:2xx01ktd]link[/url:2xx01ktd]] to “How ME2 will work without ME1 save” article at Eurogamer.


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Shir'le
F'sarn natha tithaur wun l'su'aco.

-= Shir'le E. Illios =-
Chosen of Eilistraee
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