Universe
Mass Effect's setting would take too long to explain and would contain too many spoilers, but the main point is that it is believable. Tech is way out there, but the depth of the game makes up for it. I could explain to you why your gun will never run out of ammo, or how this form of psychic powers formed and operates. The only thing they left out that I noticed was the language barrier. One omission in a completely unique universe is ok with me. It should be noted that this game is based on a novel by Drew Karpyshyn, a Canadian Sci-Fi writer, and that may explain the depth, but still, the lengths this game goes to in it's efforts to make you believe is almost excessive. Good thing it's all optional.
Cast
Now is a good time to talk about one of my favorite facts about this game; the dialogue. Your character speaks, a strange turn for most RPGs, especially one where you can choose your gender and moral outcome. There is a fantastic amount of dialogue in this game, and exploring it is my next project for the game. The main characters, male or female, are voiced by acting nobodies, no notable careers to speak of, however the supporting cast is impressive. Keith David voices your CO, you may know him as the Arbiter from the halo series, or all those navy recruitment ads on TV. Lance Henriksen voices a minor admiral that you never actually meet, but exchange a good deal of communication with. You would know him from Alien vs. Predator (old coughing boss-dude who gets shanked), or maybe The Terminator, or Aliens, or Dog Day Afternoon.
Marina Sirtis, who you would recognize from Star Trek: Next Gen, plays a major chick-villian. Most enjoyable and recognizable would be Seth Green, who plays your pilot. He's a lot of fun to have around, and lacks none of his dark Robot-Chicken-esque humor.
Equipment and Lvling
You will never, ever need to buy anything in this game. Ever.
Like Bioware's previous titles, Knights of the Old Republic I and II, (K.o.t.o.r.) drops are always better than buyables, and the drops are scaled to your level, as are the baddies. Each character gets the same four weapons, and can use them with a variety of proficiency, based on class. The gear is very cool and believable, particularly the guns. The guns compact and expand for use, and there are several manufacturers that produce different looking gear, each tailored towards a certain goal. Some manufacturers build for accuracy, others for damage. Some build armor for shields, some for pure armor plating. Everything you carry can be enhanced with slotted items, all in a fairly simple interface for choosing who gets what. I of course prioritized myself for the best loot, but it's easy to be fair when you can's use more than a few things anyway, thanks to your class. Each race has a different brand of armor to go with their unique physiologies. As far as leveling goes, it operates very much in the background. Gain xp from various activies, get points per level to spend in various trees to enhance your abilities. As a combat specialist, I ended up with about a 45% damage boost, all things combined. Armies melted before my might. I need to up the difficulty on the next play.
As opposed to the Xbox system of awarding you useless bragging points for Achievements, the PC version grants you bonuses and abilities like +5% exp for completing Achievements. Yet another good incentive for replay, as one in particular ups the level cap another ten. Also, once you finish the game you can replay with the same character you just used, items, skills and all. Great incentive for finishing the game on harder difficulties.
Gameplay (Finally, I know)
During combat, it functions like a third person shooter, similar to Gears of War or Killzone. Like Kotor, it has a pause feature to plan your attack and command your allies directly. I rarely did this as my allies did a fine job on their own. I took it as a personal challenge to kill more than my allies did, which was hard on occasion. One thing to note is that the camera is not rotational while moving. This is third person all the way, camera bob and all. The default settings even come with film grain. The only time you can rotate the camera is while paused in combat mode. Useful, but I only used it to combo on bosses. The funniest thing that you can do is travel with a pair of well trained Biotic dudes, who will promptly toss baddies around, up, and even suspend them in the middle of the room. Ragdoll physics, anyone? Once the enemy is floating aimlessly in the air we all took great pleasure in filling them full of superheated and hyper accelerated bitz of metal. Giggle-inducing when the baddie is a giant four-legged mech and issues mechanical screams of agony. ..I am a sick, sick man.
