Mass Effect 2

[Puck]

know this .... 2 is hardly anything like 1
the whole system of character building is stripped to almost nothing
it's almost impossible to reach level 30 in 1 playthrough
there's nowhere near the armament system like in 1
there's no unlimited shotgun ammo ;(
there's no steady supply of container goodies - there's none
you only get to visit 1/2 dozen areas of sites (like Citadel)
there is virtually no planet exploration on foot (and no Mako at all)
planet scanning is a pain in the
.... and you'll love it
I really cant put into words what it is about this game
it is a stripped shell of a game from ME1
yet, somehow it is every bit as enjoyable (to some)
it's interesting that it has received higher ratings

[PhiSlammaJamma]

I played the first one and it was decent. The planet exploring by vehicle was kinda lame. It got real repetitive and the vehicle while amusing at times, was tiring. So I'm glad to hear that it is a different game altogether. I thought ME1 could use some improvements.

[Puck]

they took alot of the issues with ME1 and instead of improving on them, they just removed them altogether.

[Smudger]

Originally Posted by PhiSlammaJamma

I played the first one and it was decent. The planet exploring by vehicle was kinda lame. It got real repetitive and the vehicle while amusing at times, was tiring.

I thought ME1 was an outstanding game with the only criticism being the Mako exploration and the elevator cutscenes. I am waiting for some spare time before I get ME2. Anyone know the rough time estimate for a full playthrough, including side missions?

Also torn by FFXIII when it is released... ho hum, not enough hours in the day.

[Puck]

around 40 hours if you sift through the depths of dialogue trees, search every nook and cranny (which you dont really have to, most of the 'pick-ups' end up being obvious .... and few and far between)
scanning planets for minerals can take some time, and getting 100% planets will also add a few hours.

if you plan on adding everyone to your team, plus doing all there loyalty missions, plus having all the conversations you can with them, plus doing all the side missions , you may find yourself playing for awhile.

it's not a weekend warrior type game like Bioshock 2, nor is it a month long grind like a FF / KOTOR. It's somewhere comfortably in between

[BigRed3]

My first playthrough took me 28 hours. I left tons of side missions on the table though. I still don't get how people die in this game. I had three character missions that I did wrong where I didn't get that characters loyalty. But did any of them die at the end? Nope. One of the people who's loyalty I did have did. I did everything right at the end too, or at least I thought.

[Puck]

yeah, the first time I went into the endgame scenario, I had everyone loyal, all the ship upgrades, most all of the weapons upgrades, etc.......
still for some reason I lost Mordin and also Zaeed. I restarted the endgame and the second time I only lost Mordin, which is a glitch btw.
so, knowing what I knew, I went at it again and finally got the "Noone Left Behind" achievement ..... which I'm sure will have ramifications in ME3

[Puck]

btw, getting back to one of the earlier questions. .......
decisions made in ME1 have effect on events in ME2 and will further impact the final outcome of ME3.
I've run into several characters that I saved/helped from 1, that offered some extended playtime in 2. some also provided some deeper backstory

things that could help in ME3
The Rachni - so if you destroy them in 1, you might want to fix that
The Krogan - having millions of them is a bad idea .... or is it ?
The Geth - wtf you say? yeah....you could probably use their help (decision in 2)
The Council - probably a waste, but saving the Ascension in 1 might be helpful in 3
There's also a base station in 2 that you can destroy or save ... save it
just guessing here, but from the looks of the ending, Shepard is going to need alot of help

[Gunny]

Originally Posted by Smudger

Also torn by FFXIII when it is released... ho hum, not enough hours in the day.

bleh I wouldn't waste my time. Final Fantasy XIII has turned into an adventure, not an RPG.

[Gunny]

Out of interest, I imported my character and he talks really quickly. I've noticed this happens in some other Bioware games but is this for everyone or just my imported dude.