Mass Effect — the Shepard trilogy. (I also bought Andromeda, but it’s gotta get in line.) So first off, Mass Effect Legendary Edition (the Shepard trilogy, remastered, plus most of the DLC) is on sale for $6 on Xbox. It was on sale for that a few months ago, when I bought it. Frequent sales tell me it probably goes on sale on PlayStation and PC as well. I paid $4 for the deluxe version of Andromeda — the base version was $3. That sale goes for about another week on Xbox, but check your store of choice if you’re interested.
I started Mass Effect a couple times, and both times, I got my ass handed to me and I quit. The first time, I wound up on a space station and I could not get past the pirates who took it over. The second time, I couldn’t get past the lava planet (where you pick up best girl). It was frustrating because I had no problem with Eden Prime (the training mission) or the various side quests on the Citadel (which do include some combat). I got the Legendary Edition at such a good price, I decided when I got done with my fifth Cyberpunk run (and first with Phantom Liberty) I’d start it. Not only did I damn near 100% the first one, I rolled through the trilogy. I didn’t get the ending I wanted, but I was happy with the ending I got. I see why everyone was so upset. After like half an hour of exposition, they give you three choices, but they give you these three unmarked paths. And I guess you’re supposed to pause it and Google it? But I just took the path on the right and watched the cut scene.
Of course what stands out most about Mass Effect is, it’s like this cross between Star Trek and Star Wars (the same people made Knights of the Old Republic, the best Star Wars game, so that tracks), but when you get done with the first one, you import your save into the second one, and it remembers a lot of your choices. Choices you make in the first one carry through to the second and third ones, and the third one will refer back to choices you made in the first two. You could start either of the latter two with randomised choices, but it’s cool when someone mentions something you said or did that long ago. There are even a couple of things you can do in the third one if you set up very specific things in the first two. Like brokering a peace between two races. I thought I did right by everyone, but my choice was to kill one friend, or let another one jump off a cliff. That was what I got for trying for peace without doing everything 100% right. So I had to choose. But some people follow a guide and get that extra special outcome. (I’ve looked at it and I can’t figure out what I missed, but whatever.)
You can’t save everyone. Despite all your best efforts, a few of your longtime companions have to die in the third one. Even in the first one, there’s a scene toward the end where you send one of your crew one way, and the other one with you, the other way. At the end of the quest, you can only save one. And it keeps coming up in the second and third ones.
Oh, and it’s an old game. 2007, 2008, and 2010? Something like that. They all came out on the Xbox 360. I played them all on the Xbox Series X. On original hardware, they were known for their long elevator scenes, and whichever two characters you had with you would banter, and sometimes bicker, until they exhausted all their lines. (Garrus and Wrex are always the best to have with you.)
I wouldn’t say it’s a masterpiece… but it’s pretty damn close. I know it’s gonna stick with me for a while. So I also bought the original, for $5. I wanna try it again because that’s the one that stumped me twice. So I’m hoping third time is the charm. 2 and 3 aren’t available on Xbox digitally for some reason, so I’ll be looking for used copies of those. I wanna go back and do it again but on the original versions.
Mass Effect — the Shepard trilogy. (I also bought Andromeda, but it’s gotta get in line.) So first off, Mass Effect Legendary Edition (the Shepard trilogy, remastered, plus most of the DLC) is on sale for $6 on Xbox. It was on sale for that a few months ago, when I bought it. Frequent sales tell me it probably goes on sale on PlayStation and PC as well. I paid $4 for the deluxe version of Andromeda — the base version was $3. That sale goes for about another week on Xbox, but check your store of choice if you’re interested.
I started Mass Effect a couple times, and both times, I got my ass handed to me and I quit. The first time, I wound up on a space station and I could not get past the pirates who took it over. The second time, I couldn’t get past the lava planet (where you pick up best girl). It was frustrating because I had no problem with Eden Prime (the training mission) or the various side quests on the Citadel (which do include some combat). I got the Legendary Edition at such a good price, I decided when I got done with my fifth Cyberpunk run (and first with Phantom Liberty) I’d start it. Not only did I damn near 100% the first one, I rolled through the trilogy. I didn’t get the ending I wanted, but I was happy with the ending I got. I see why everyone was so upset. After like half an hour of exposition, they give you three choices, but they give you these three unmarked paths. And I guess you’re supposed to pause it and Google it? But I just took the path on the right and watched the cut scene.
Of course what stands out most about Mass Effect is, it’s like this cross between Star Trek and Star Wars (the same people made Knights of the Old Republic, the best Star Wars game, so that tracks), but when you get done with the first one, you import your save into the second one, and it remembers a lot of your choices. Choices you make in the first one carry through to the second and third ones, and the third one will refer back to choices you made in the first two. You could start either of the latter two with randomised choices, but it’s cool when someone mentions something you said or did that long ago. There are even a couple of things you can do in the third one if you set up very specific things in the first two. Like brokering a peace between two races. I thought I did right by everyone, but my choice was to kill one friend, or let another one jump off a cliff. That was what I got for trying for peace without doing everything 100% right. So I had to choose. But some people follow a guide and get that extra special outcome. (I’ve looked at it and I can’t figure out what I missed, but whatever.)
You can’t save everyone. Despite all your best efforts, a few of your longtime companions have to die in the third one. Even in the first one, there’s a scene toward the end where you send one of your crew one way, and the other one with you, the other way. At the end of the quest, you can only save one. And it keeps coming up in the second and third ones.
Oh, and it’s an old game. 2007, 2008, and 2010? Something like that. They all came out on the Xbox 360. I played them all on the Xbox Series X. On original hardware, they were known for their long elevator scenes, and whichever two characters you had with you would banter, and sometimes bicker, until they exhausted all their lines. (Garrus and Wrex are always the best to have with you.)
I wouldn’t say it’s a masterpiece… but it’s pretty damn close. I know it’s gonna stick with me for a while. So I also bought the original, for $5. I wanna try it again because that’s the one that stumped me twice. So I’m hoping third time is the charm. 2 and 3 aren’t available on Xbox digitally for some reason, so I’ll be looking for used copies of those. I wanna go back and do it again but on the original versions.