What Was The Best Mass Effect Game?

@mjorh: for some may be.. not for me though..

Mass Effect: I love talking to people in this game. It has some of the best non-critical dialogue in the series. Too bad non of it paid off. I talk to someone and they give this amazing set up for a side mission only to find that the mission was the lamest, most cookie cutter thing ever conceived. I didn't do too many of them, but enough to know that it was a general trend with the game. The game is also rushed or at least very unpolished. Outside of the Citadel (and maybe the Normandy) the game can be tedious and ugly. Interestingly, the gameplay is actually generally enjoyable on PC. I had heard as much but it was still pleasant to experience. Shame the console controls are so terrible in comparison.

Mass Effect 2: Pretty good first impression. However, outside of some choice moments, it eventually becomes somewhat of a numb experience. Most of the cast is not really as awesome as I first thought. They all seem superficially great but only a few are really interesting. The interesting ones are excellent though. Gameplay is decent-to-great depending on how much you rely on tech/biotic abilities. The shooting is okay but can get monotonous if you don't shake it up. The ending isn't terrible but I don't find it as awesome as everyone else seems to. Yeah, your choices kind of matter but it all seems fairly artificial. Pieces on a chess board. Shadow Breaker is the best ME mission.

Mass Effect 3: My first play-through of this game was quite probably more enjoyable than with the other titles. I found it moving and fun. The auto conversation wasn't something I really noticed until it was pointed out. It is generally a gorgeous game. I liked, or found interesting, virtually every character I came across. Combat was excellent (though I currently much prefer it on consoles) and the levels were great. The ending sucks really badly. The story was cracker jack until that point, IMO. It has some (generally mild) cringe inducers here and there, but it works very well overall. The game seems sensitive to your sound set-up which can affect the games atmosphere, and thus your enjoyment. All in all, the game had the most soul of the series. A beautiful and sometimes heart wrenching game.

I played ME1 after I played 2, so it felt like an absolute slog....gosh, the shooting, the awful cover system...the combat just had a clunky, slow, almost pointless feel to it. The story was really great though, and the characters were as great as ever.

ME2 takes it for me. Everything just blended together so perfectly: the characters and their individual stories, the fantastic shootouts, the overall arc was so tight and so exciting. I don't know what it is about ME3 that doesn't quite take it to the top for me...it's definitely an incredible game that totally finishes the trilogy on a high note.

Tough one, because all 3 did great things but had some really annoying flaws. I'd have to ultimately go with 3. Even though I despised the ending, I thought everything else was great up until that point. They did a really good job of making the player undergo a sense of "desperation" in the game world in gathering resources to fight the reapers.

2nd was good too, I just found it ludicrously easy. But the suicide mission was fucking amazing. I actually liked the change to the gunplay with the re-loadable heat sink mags.

Everything about the first was good, but didn't do anything particularly amazing. Couldn't stand the loading at some parts (Citadel) and the planet exploration was ok at first, but got tedious on subsequent play throughs. Not to mention they just didn't look that great. The inventory was an ugly mess

Oh yeah?! EMO?! c'mon man seriously "whiny" ? what the hell does that suppose to mean ?

First, i need to know your ideal "Character Developments Criteria" , name a game or sh that you think had done a great n compelling job in that are ....

@Lulu_Lulu , In ME2 we were dealing with a great character called Illusive man , which i believe devs really pulled it off in making him a man with pride n dignity .....he actually was the big deal ,not some lame alien shits

ME2 without a doubt

ME2>>>ME3>>>>>>>>ME

Mass Effect 2 without a doubt. The loyalty missions are awesome to play through. Mass Effect 3 has some issues with the ending(it could have been done better, but overall it's just an amazing game). So i vote for ME 2

"Character Developments Criteria" What is the point to talk about that when you talk about ME2? There is none in the game. The only amount is from Jake between the second and third game. The rest of the time they just sit around their corn of the ship and brood.

I strongly agree with you, especially about the characters in 2. If you actually talked Thane and the rest, they really had meaningful stories. Legion came a long way in 3.

Nice survey. While I am pretty sure that you will shun the feature, may I ask if you used the map with the guard positions and routes to your targets during assassination missions?

You didn't get my point , anyway u tell me a good game that "characterization" is its strong suit in your opinion

Mass Effect 1 was.ME2 was also great in it's own way even though it felt more like a shooter.1 had the best story and felt like an action rpg,2 had a better and bigger cast but played like a shooter.

3 is an abomination that shouldn't have happened.MP in an RPG what a joke.....

I finished my play though of Mass Effect 2 and I am working on beating ME3. I skipped ME1 all together it's unplayable to me now.

Well, DA2 has better character than ME2.

Mass Effect 1, the gameplay was inferior to the rest of the series, but that's it. Everything else was better, the squad, the story, the villains, everything, i'll never forget the first time I was told "Hey, you gotta leave someone here to die", and been forced to choose between two of my squadmates, none of the choices in the other Mass Effect games where as tough as that.

Mass Effect 2 was a vast improvement for the gameplay, but the whole game was just your squad whining about there random petty problems which are apparently more important than saving the Universe.

As for Mass Effect 3. It's hard to say, I kinda need to go through it again, when I played it I was going through a tough time, so I didn't really pay full attention to it, plus I kept hearing that the ending sucked (which it did), so I just played it for the sake of playing it and never even gave myself a chance to enjoy it. I did like the multiplayer though, I was shocked at how good that was.

Mass Effect 2 had amazing characters. Mass Effect 1 had exploration. Mass Effect 3 had an emotional elevator scene.

i agree with this. :)

The third one is my least favourite, and there's certain elements that Mass Effect and Mass Effect 2 both do better than each other. I think Mass Effect has the better individual story of all three games, and it's most definitely the most RPG like. But I'm a stickler for game play, and the combat severely lacks. Mass Effect 2 was a vast improvement over the original in terms of game play, and the mood was toned down and it focused more on the interaction between the characters. But it's story wasn't as good as the first game. Overall I would say Mass Effect 2 is my favourite because it felt a lot more fluid to play and it didn't feel as much like a dedicated shooter as the third game, but that doesn't meant to say it's the best across all areas.

Mass Effect 2 was by far my favourite, followed by Mass Effect, then Mass Effect 3.

ME2 has the most character development, the most characters you can have in your team, the most influence you can have on the Normandy, e.g. Getting upgrades and scanning planets, and very gripping action from start to finish.

There was a wider range of romance options, and the chemistry in the team was well thought out. The return of old favourites from Mass Effect was a joy to see.

As for Mass Effect 3, i found it too short, a lot of the features from the previous games were removed, the dialogue options were limited, and above all, there were no krogan squadmates (without DLC).

I think you are right on the money here. I didn't think ME 3 was too short though. But i would have liked to see more playable characters. That's the only gripe i had

Mass Effect 2.

@lorddagon9000: Why do you like that cast? I still do not understand why some many like that cast from ME2. None of them are that important to the story. Most of them are the same with only back ground changed.

@wiouds:

I agree. in fact, the character development and their importance in me2 is undeniably less than in the first. the characters are more just typical archetypes to fill a desired need by the devs.

I never played the series, but my younger brother is very vocal on his opinion of it.

He loves the first game, absolutely despises the second game, and likes the third.

Mass Effect 1 is the better RPG. Mass Effect 2 is the better Third Person Shooter. Personally I prefer RPGs.

imo, your comment sums up the answer to the question and I agree.

I want both balance and working together. There are better third person shooter than Mass Effect 2.

@wiouds:

oh, without a doubt. in fact, there's no reason why mass effect 2 couldn't have further developed the rpg aspect while making it an even better cover shooter with upgrades. and, instead, they went with mediocrity on all accounts.

typical of bioware, after playing their games I am not at all satisfied.

in fact, it's why after playing it a very short bit i'm in no hurry to fire up da:origins.

Mass Effect 2.

2 had the perfect balance between action and RPG for me. It also had the best story by some distance.

As outstanding as ME3 was, I don't think it properly dealt with all of it's characters properly. it focused on some while side-lining others. E.G. Harbinger and most of the former ME2 squad.

So, ME2 gets my vote purely for the strength of it's character development.

Hmmm, I'm torn between ME1 and ME2, but having read through this thread I see a lot of good points being made so I think I'll have to go with ME2. While I was a little bit annoyed by the streamlining of the RPG elements and the removal of the Mako (yes, I realize that I'm totally alone on missing the Mako), the improved graphics and handling, the loyalty missions, the sheer number of choices that carried over from ME1, and the impressive array of possible end-game scenarios really do put it over the top.

-Byshop

Mass effect 2

ME2 for gameplay and ME1 for story.

I voted ME2.

i'm amazed that people can even call mass2 a rpg in any way. it is not. it is a 3rd person cover shooter with upgrades.

and, mass1 barely reaches the threshold for being called one.j

it certainly lets me know why we have so very few actual rpg's and why games are so dumbed-down.

cmon witcher3.......

Well I've just beat ME2 for the 2nd time and I have to say I enjoyed it immensely.

Everything I didn't like about ME1, they fixed in 2.

I enjoyed the characters and felt way more involved with them than just having them to select for each mission. (Thane is my fav)

I thought the story was excellent as well. Starting the ME3 tonight, we'll see how it goes.

They did add good things to the second game but they remove more of what I like about the first one.

I still can not find a reason to like the characters and I found the worse cast I see in any game.

The Ending of Mass Effect 3 ruined the experience for me. It had the best from ME and ME2 but the ending really affected my judgement.