Mass Effect, like BioWare's critically-acclaimed Star Wars: KOTOR, allows you to fully customize your very own character in a seemingly endless amount of ways and thrust him or her into the "Traverse" via a high-ranking position in the Alliance Navy. With this in mind, one customizable option available to you is that of picking from a variety of different backstories to outfit your character with. Such a thing will ultimately change how the character in question will be viewed by others throughout the game, whether it be somewhere along the main storyline, or sometime during one of the game's many side missions.

In conjunction with the somewhat superficial character customization features, you're also required to choose a specific class for your hero. These classes range from your stereotypical, gun-toting super-soldier, to those who rely almost solely on the use of "Biotic" powers that are in a sense similar to the "Force" powers a Jedi would possess, but much more in-depth and fun to use. You can also make your particular character excel in the "Tech" department as well, meaning they'll be extra useful in more tactical situations throughout the game's many on-foot battles. However, no matter what class you end up choosing, your character will ultimately possess and utilize many a different ability specific to said classes. These abilities are then able to be upgraded as you and your squadmates obtain experience points and, ultimately, higher levels as you progress through the game.

To expand further on the aforementioned "Traverse," it's simply just another name that's been coined in order to refer to our much more familiar "Universe." The difference you ask? Well, in Mass Effect, this so-called Traverse consists of an EXTREMELY extensive array of planetary systems, all of which are navigable by space vessel, more specifically you and your crew's Normandy; a high-end Alliance Naval vessel with an intense amount of power under the hood if you will. The organic lifeforms present throughout every planet present within the Traverse are greatly in danger however, as a traitorous soldier by the name of Saren is plotting to destroy all of them. Now as basic as it sounds, Mass Effect's story can arguably be considered one of the best in science-fiction history, both in actuality and in video games. I say such a thing mainly because there's much more to the story in terms of painstaking detail that I simply cannot mention in a mere review such as this one.

In order to stop Saren from successfully completing his mission, you, your squadmates, and your ship's crew must do whatever it takes to stop him. To aid you in doing such a thing, a plethora of weapons and upgrades are at your disposal. Weapons range from your standard pistol to much more powerful firearms, such as assault rifles, sniper rifles, shotguns, and even grenade "throwers." Like I said, you can upgrade said weapons to make them even more powerful, in conjunction with the ammo each firearm is outfitted with. Even your soldiers' armor can be upgraded to give you extra protection against enemy forces. Certain classes are also outfitted with things such as "Biotic Amps," which allow you to utilize the Biotic powers I briefly mentioned earlier, as well as "Omni-Tools" that aid in performing other tasks including salvaging artifacts, weaponry, and so forth.

The combat in Mass Effect is most definitely something to remember it by, as it's often very fast-paced and exciting by all means. You generally gain a small amount of experience every time you successfully kill an enemy, complete any mission objective, or even do something as simple as examine a computer terminal aboard your own ship. This experience obviously goes towards your and your squadmates' leveling up as the game progresses, which I also mentioned briefly before. What's really good about this particular system, however, is how all of your fellow squadmates essentially stay at the same level you're currently at, and if you so choose, you can manually distribute both their and your talent points, or simply leave it up to the game's AI. This comes in especially handy when you come to rely on a particular squad member for their Biotic, Tech, or Combat expertise. All in all, the battles incorporated throughout the game require you to utilize an almost strict balance between both standard weapons combat and a character's particular forte. Granted, this can be frustrating at times, but once you get the hang of Mass Effect's seemingly tactical combat system, you'll have a great time.

On the other side of the combat spectrum within Mass Effect lies the almost monotonous vehicular exploration and combat. Why monotonous? Well for starters, it is quite a treat to ride around in the ol' Mako, otherwise known as a typical Alliance rover, for the first couple of times you get to do so. After that, you'll soon find out that the Mako itself doesn't handle all that well, albeit a great deal of firepower it indeed possesses. When exploring other planets though for secondary mission objectives, you'll discover that your trusty Mako is essential for survival inside the harsh atmospheres of much more distant and ultimately hazardous planets. On some of these planets, you'll encounter giant worm-like creatures known as Thresher Maws who, annoyingly enough, viciously assault your vehicle until you've driven safely out of its range or spend several minutes killing it. They aren't that prominent on most planets, but when you do manage to cross one's path, you'll probably wish you hadn't. To be perfectly honest, I just feel the vehicular combat falls a tad flat compared to the on-foot portions of the game, without a doubt.

Graphically, Mass Effect delivers on all fronts, with breathtakingly-rendered environments and simply stunning character models. The amount of detail put into every single environment is just remarkable, regardless of essentially how important that particular environment is to the progression of the game. Great examples of this can ultimately be seen when traversing one of the many aforementioned planets in order to complete a majority of the game's side missions. Another great example that supports the game's graphical excellence is that of not only the character models themselves, but more noticeably their faces during the game's many dialogue-heavy sections. Their facial expressions in conjunction with the way their mouths sync perfectly to the words they're uttering left me in awe after the first twenty minutes. Excellent work, BioWare. Excellent work indeed.

The musical score in conjunction with the voice acting being showcased throughout the game greatly exceeded my expectations as well. Some truly top-notch performances by pretty much all of the actors really, for lack of a better phrase, suck you into the game and every excruciating detail that's present within it. As for the aforementioned musical score, it strikes up at just the right moments with just the right amount of emotion thrown in for good measure. Such things really help the game progress smoothly and satisfyingly on all fronts.

To be frank, I've never played an RPG as good as this one, even if it is considered to be an "action-RPG." An almost perfect balance between exciting combat scenarios, excellent graphics, voice acting, and the best science-fiction story you'll come across make Mass Effect a true force to be reckoned with in the gaming industry today. If you're still not sold on buying it, let alone renting it, it took me roughly 20 hours to complete on my first playthrough, and I didn't even manage to complete the last half dozen or so side missions I'd been working on throughout the entire course of the game. Simply put, if you consider yourself a "completionist," this game is the game for you. If not, the main storyline will take you anywhere from 8-10 hours to complete, leaving you to potentially complete the game on the two harder difficulty settings for those hard-to-get achievement points.