Mass Effect 2

After going through Mass Effect 1 twice, beating Saren, levelling up my Shepard to the max, I wondered how can BioWare possibly better this game ?
In comes Mass Effect 2. Technically superior, looks great on the PC, plays like a gem, starts the story with a huge bang (I cannot reveal what it is, for the life of me) and never lifts its foot off the gas. Commander Shepard must now find a way to repel the Reapers from reaching their galaxy by recruiting a myriad of diverse characters of all races by convincing them to fight for the greater good.
It is these characters who drive the story, with interesting back stories, spectacular developments over the course of the game provided you devote time to listening to their story, helping them out with their lives and use them to fully realise their potential in battle. These team mates become more than just that, they become like an extended family from across the galaxy, each with his/her own traits, behavior, skills, complexities.
The overall story is just as good as the first, with an added incentive this time provided you played through the first. And that is exactly how this game has been designed - to cater to the fans who have played through the first game. It lets you import the save files so you get a bonus while creating your character the first time and have all your decisions from the last game affect this one. It gives you a sense of connectivity to the universe, but even if you havent played the first game there is plenty to look forward to in this one as well. The story is not overly dependent on the first one, and the character progression is rewarding just as much.
Speaking of progression, it has been streamlined and now each class offers a special power which can be unlocked once you have the required experience. It favours fast paced combat more, as you will have to devote less time choosing how to distribute skill points as the number of available skills have lessened and its for the good as you now feel more in control of your character once you master the limited skills to the fullest rather than having 5 more skills done up to the half.
I cannot take away anything from this game, from its addictive gameplay, spectacular characters and great story to keep you hooked for hours.